A Simple Bet Between Friends
by SardonicEffigy
Summary: A simple bet between friends. Yang must make Jaune a better fighter. Sounds simple enough, but with something precious on the line, how far will Yang go to complete her task?
1. Chapter 1

**Authors Note: Alright here is a new thing… a very new thing indeed.**

**This story is the product of a writing "game" some friends and I did. Basically we all picked our favorite ships and handed those over to one of the other authors, who then had to write a story based on that ship. **

**I got Kriegslied's favorite. Million dollars if you can guess the parring. **

**I hope you enjoy.  
****Sincerely SardonicEffigy**

* * *

Yang winced as the smaller combatant smashed into the ground, again. Said combatant, Jaune Arc, was easily the weakest fighter in their class. In truth it had become a little embarrassing whenever he went up to the stage. It wasn't that he wasn't trying, it was just that he lacked any form of… well form.

Yang winced again as he took a particularly hard hit to the stomach from Cardin's mace. The far larger man left several openings and gaps in his defence that, if Yang were fighting him, would have turned the fight swiftly in her favour. However, Cardin knew the person he was fighting lacked the skill required to exploit said weaknesses. Instead, by the time Jaune finally made a move for the gaps Cardin was ready, the entire fight was a baiting game.

After several more hard hits and a few more hard smacks on the floor the fight was over.

_He did… better… than last time at least. _

Yang clapped her hands along with the bulk of Team RWBY and JNPR. She heard a low murmur next to her from her partner.

"What was that Kitty cat?" Yang took a not so subtle pleasure in the way her partner's eye twitched.

Blake glared at her blonde partner for the nickname before pretending it never happened. "I said, he's unteachable." She picked her book back up when it became clear Miss Goodwitch wasn't going to pick on her to fight.

Yang wasn't sure if it was because her protective side, or the fact Jaune was Ruby's friend, but for whatever reason she couldn't help defending him at least somewhat."He lasted a lot longer than what he used to manage." She was careful to keep her voice low to not attract unwanted attention from either the teacher or the students around her.

Blake sighed and slightly lowered her book. "He has improved slightly but he also trains with a Mistrillian champion, he should be far better than he is now."

"That's not really how it works though, I mean yes, he should be learning a lot from her, but just because you're good at something doesn't mean you're good at teaching it." Yang put her face in her hands as she waited for something interesting to happen in the fight in the arena.

"Or he's just bad at this." Blake kept her eyes focused on the novel in front of her.

Yang sighed. "Vomit boy tries, what more can you ask?"

As the two talked Weiss leaned over to hush them, Yang promptly ignored her.

"With the right person he could be a total badass, hell you could probably even do it." Yang sent a wink in her partners direction.

"And yet I don't want to waste my time, maybe you should do it." Blake said it like she knew the answer to her own statement.

"Maybe I will." Yang couldn't help but laugh at Blake's doubting glare.

"Yeah, and you'll turn him into one of the best combatants of our year." Blake rolled her eyes and turned back to her book.

"Wanna have a bet?" Yang move her eyes back to the fight in front of them.

"And what would we be betting?" Blake looked up from her book, apparently finding some interest in the line of thought.

"If I can make him competent, not the best but not bad, then you have to… take Weiss to that dance coming up!" Blake's shoulders stiffened slightly for a moment before shaking her head.

The heiress leaned over slightly. "I did not agree to such things."

"If you can't, which is the far more likely event, then..." A smile creeped onto her face and she held out her hand. "You have to cut your hair." Yang almost fell out of her chair. "Looks like we don't have a bet." Blake began to pull her hand back before Yang gripped it tightly.

"You got yourself a deal Kitty cat."

"What!?" Blakes eyes went wide. "That wasn't real, you-" She was interrupted by the sound of the bell and Yang sprinting out of the class at Ruby like speeds.

Not before getting the last word in however. "We have a deal." She was out the door and a silence spread through the classroom for a moment before she leaned back in slightly. "Get a nice dress, something to make Weiss go wild." And Yang was off in search of her new student.

She didn't fail to hear the screech from Weiss.

* * *

Jaune was tired, tired of his failure as a huntsmen, as a hero. He was tired of the repeated attempts at getting better that always seemed to end in failure. At the moment he was… physically tired as well.

He walked through the halls of Beacon to JNPR's dorm room in silence. He was glad the day was over, and even more so that he had the weekend to sleep in the shared dorm room. He was just about to enter his dorm when he heard someone yelling his name from behind him.

"Yo, Vomit boy!" The eccentric blonde was neither subtle nor helpful. Jaune sighed, putting on his best confidence, and turned to face the girl.

"Hey Yang, need something?" Jaune didn't intend for it come across rude but it certainly sounded that way as his exhausted tone of voice made Yang stop for a second before responding.

"What are you doing tonight?" Yang put a hand on her hip and sent him a coy smile.

Jaunes brain stopped working. Was she asking him on a date? Was this finally the time he would learn what it meant to be in a relationship? Was this real?

Yang seemed to notice, and take joy in, his confusion before setting the record straight.

"Not like that, I wanted to offer some tips to help you fight Cardin." Jaune wouldn't say he was disappointed, in truth he doubted she would ever take interest in him, he had just let his hopes get up a little. He gave a soft chuckle before speaking, though it came out more exhausted than an actual laugh.

"Thanks for the offer but Pyrrha and I have training later tonight." Jaune sagged slightly at the thought of the physically demanding and grueling training that was yet to come.

"It won't hurt to miss one night, besides you're still training, just with someone else." Yang gestured the idea off with her hand.

"I don't know Yang." Jaune didn't want to think right now, he just wanted to sleep and if he was quick enough to go to bed Pyrrha would cancel their training, he doubted Yang would let that slide.

"It really does help when training to train against multiple people, keeps you from falling into a pattern." Jaune thought on the idea. Had they become to used to it?

Jaune was never able to beat Pyrrha, he had in fact been able to hold his own for some time, but was that skill or just knowing what her moves were gonna be? Jaune's confidence took another large hit.

"I'll talk to Pyrrha about it, for now I'm gonna take a nap." Jaune turned to his door.

"It's not even four." Yang pointed out.

"It's been a long day, I didn't get a lot of sleep. Take your pick." Jaune closed the door and made his way to his bed to sleep.

As he lay there, trying to drift off into that blissful unconsciousness he began to think.

_Have I really not improved at all?_

* * *

Yang wasn't sure exactly what to call Jaune. He was her sister's friend, that much was true, she just wasn't sure what he was to her. Regardless of his title, Yang could admit to being a little worried. She didn't see Jaune as the depressed type nor did she see him as someone to give up on his dreams, no matter how impractical they may have been, but that didn't remove the damage done to a person from repeated loss. She felt all the worse for how he responded to her reasoning. Sure it made sense but that doesn't change the fact that it hurts.

_He's not as bad as he thinks he is, the people he fights are kinda perfect to fight him back as he is now. Pyrrha is a champion with a thousand different tricks to win a fight and Cardin can just muscle his way through the fight. As much as I hate the guy he isn't a weakling._

Yang found her way to the combat rooms and reserved a room for the two to train in that night, assuming he actually showed up. After that she went back to her dorm to relax for a few hours and mess around with Ruby. The group spent the bulk of the evening relaxing and playing video games, though neither Weiss or Blake were to adamant on the second event.

After the games, and a sincerely upset Schnee yelling about unrealistic 'features' in a fighting game, the group had split up to work on school work, though only Weiss and Ruby actually did any homework and Weiss was the only one doing it willingly.

Blake had settled down on her bunk to read her 'not porn' while Yang played a game on her scroll. By the time dinner rolled around Yang had decided to shoot Jaune a message about where and when they would start. She told her team the plan causing Blake to stiffen lightly and Weiss to roll her eyes at mention of the bet.

* * *

Jaune looked down at his scroll and sighed when he saw who it was from. He had half hoped Yang would drop the plan before they could ever start training, but she hadn't. He rolled himself out of bed and sat upright on the sheets.

"You're awake?" Pyrrha spoke from her own bed a few feet away.

"It would seem so." He smiled as she responded with a soft chuckle.

"Are you ready for some training then?" And then she responded with the one question he _didn't _want her to ask.

"Yang wanted to do some training between the two of us, something about mixing it up?" Jaune stood from his bed. "Though if that's a problem I can just call it off."

Pyrrha hesitated for a moment before responding. "No, no that's ok. It is a good idea to train with multiple people, it helps to train adaptability." She let a gentle smile cover her face. "Just be careful, Yang is…" His partner seemed to have trouble finding the proper word.

"Dangerous?" Jaune finished her sentence for her.

"Skilled." she was quick to correct him.

Jaune sighed again. "Well I guess I'm off to lose a spar or two. I'm sure it shouldn't take too long."

"Perhaps if you get back soon enough we could go out into Vale, as a team." She was quick to add the last part in a stammer of words as a blush came across her face.

"Sounds fun, see you soon Pyr."

Jaune pulled out his scroll to check on the location Yang had said to meet before heading off down the hall. He was surprised that she had been able to secure a training room but he figured it made sense. The rooms were available for the students to use, it was kinda the whole point of the school after all, but Pyrrha and him had always just used the roof of their dorm, it was more private was the reason she gave.

After retrieving his gear from his locker, he entered the room to see the far more competent blonde standing on the stage at the center of the room.

"You ready for some _training_?" The emphasis she put on the word didn't make him feel all that comfortable.

"Any chance we could do this some other time?" He followed up his desperate question with an awkward chuckle.

Yang, however, responded with a full laugh before halting abruptly to respond. "Nope."

Jaune sighed and pulled out his sword.

_Pyrrha and her fight all the time and Yang usually loses so she can't be all that worse than Pyrrha, right? I just gotta do what I do against Pyrrha and everything should be fine… right?_

Jaune held his shield out in front of him with his sword at his side, taking a moment to gauge his opponent's combat stance.

He knew she used fist based weapons which he should be able to stop with his shield, and his sword gave him a better reach meaning he would have the advantage over her if not for her tremendous skill over him… or the shotguns in her gauntlet… or her stupid levels of strength… come to think of it, did he really have any advantage?

"Ready?" Yang fell into a combat stance.

Jaune nodded and in an instant she was upon him, smashing one of her fists into his shield that he had barely managed to get up in time. He forced her back with a push of his shield before he sent an overhead strike which she parried with one of her gauntlets.

A frown spread across her face as she pressed her advantage and pushed him back. He was able to stop most of her hits on his shield but he was not able to gain the offensive with anything more than small probing strikes.

"What are you doing?" Yang didn't even bother putting her fist's up to block his strike as he swung with his sword, merley stepping back out of its reach.

He pulled back before speaking. "What do you mean?"

"All you're doing is taking my hits, you do know you have to fight back, right?" She smirked at her rhetorical question, not really expecting any real answer.

"And how would I do that?" She had pointed out the obvious but failed to give him any insight into how to fix the problem.

"Put some force behind your swings." Again she stated it like it was obvious.

"And when I do that, and you inevitably dodge or parry the strike I'm left wide open. What then?" Jaune was frustrated with the question, it was one he had asked himself again and again, it was a problem he kept running into with all the people he trained against.

"Then you learn." She shrugged her shoulders and fell into another stance.

"What?" Jaune let his sword fall loose in his hands to show he had no intention of starting the spar backup, not yet at least.

Yang sighed before responding. "Put force behind your attacks so that if you do hit then you'll do some damage. You'll learn what works and what doesn't." She didn't bother leaving her stance to explain her advice.

Jaune tightened his hand around the sword as he pulled it up and prepared for another fight. He took a few steps forward before taking a probing strike at Yangs chest, not with any force behind the strike or any real intention of creating damage but instead to see how she would react.

When she retaliated with a punch to his shield using her right hand he decide to put her advice into action. He swung his sword horizontally, and since she was using her right hand to strike she wasn't quite ready to parry the attack.

He couldn't help but feel proud as the blade connected with her aura before her other hand smashed into his shield again, this time throwing him off balance enough that he couldn't block her follow up punch, forcing him up into the air before smashing into the ground.

"See, you learned to pay more attention. Very important lesson, you even got a strike in. Lets go again."

Jaune groaned as he stood back up, Pyrrha never hit him like that. With that thought he was reminded with the fact that Yang usually lost to his partner, something wasn't adding up in the math. The logical conclusion was that his partner was always going easy on him. Even when she was going easy and he was trying his hardest he couldn't even hope to defeat her.

"Hey, no sulking. I wanna punch some stuff." Yangs words of wisdom forced him out of his funk and back into a stance, that had his shield front and center with the hopes of stopping the punches from connecting with his physical body.

Even through the shield and his Aura, the punches still hurt every time they smashed into the metal.

* * *

**Authors Note: Ok there it is, the first chapter of my first romance fic… kinky.**

**A lot shorter than what I usually write but that will be the norm for this story, it's meant to be a lot faster than Remnant Solution and would ideally be finished before summer 2019, we shall see.**

**I hope you all enjoyed and as always I encourage you all to write a review and to let me know what you think of my writing and portrayal of the characters, this helps me be a better writer and in turn write better stories for all you. **

**Thanks for reading.  
****Sincerely SardonicEffigy **


	2. Chapter 2

**Author Note: Not too much to say here. **

* * *

Jaune held his shield up to take the force of the strike before pushing the arm to the side. He slashed with his sword at his opponent, connecting and damaging her aura slightly. He intended to follow up with a hit from his shield but was caught unprepared for a second fist hit to him in the chest, sending him sprawling to the side.

"That'll do for now Vomit Boy." Yang strolled over and offered a hand to help the downed knight to his feet. "You're getting better, just gotta remember that I have two weapons to strike with." She pulled him up with far more force than was necessary, throwing him off the ground for a moment. "I'm also stronger than you, if you couldn't tell." A grin spread across her face. "How's it feel to know a girl is stronger than you?"

"A girl?" Jaune sheathed his weapons and turned to the blonde brawler. "You're certainly not the only one, have you seen Nora and Pyrrha? I might be able to straight up out strength them but they have all the technique. They hit _way_ harder." Jaune rubbed a spot where Pyrrha had hit him in their own personal training the night before.

"Well soon enough you'll be on the same level… ok maybe not the same level." Yang walked over to one of the benches and sat down. "Still though, in two weeks you've gotten loads better. With my expert guidance that is." She said in a not so humble tone.

"I also train with Pyrrha so… not just you." Jaune sat on one of the benches next to her. "Besides your sense of '_training' _is more experience than actual training." Yang put a hand over her heart and pretended to be hurt, though the smile on her face betrayed the look.

"I give you all the advice you need _after_ I beat you, it's more fun that way."

"Fun for who?" Jaune winced slightly as Yang hit him in the shoulder.

"Anyways, we have Combat class today maybe you'll finally put that jackass in his place. I can see it now." yang adopted a theatrical pose. "Jaune Arc the hero of Beacon, saviour of the useless wimp-"

"Hey!" Jaune wasn't that bad… was he?

"- Slayer of the malicious Cardin!" Yang sat back down like a normal person. "The girls will be lining up."

Jaune was the one to scoff this time. "You wanna take a bet on it?" He pulled his scroll out and checked the time. "Well, I guess that's it for today. I need to head back to my dorm and get ready for class."

"Don't forget a shower, morning training is the worse for the smell." Yang stood and followed in the direction of the locker room.

"How is morning training any worse than night training?" Jaune held the door open for his companion.

Yang shrugged her shoulders and went off to find her locker. "No peeking or I'll have to increase the intensity of your _training_."

"Who says I'd want to see you changing?" Jaune had to yell his response for her to hear him but the room was abandoned anyways so there was no one to complain.

"Im hurt, are you saying I'm not the embodiment of perfection?"

Jaune scoffed at the statement laced with sarcasm. "I share a room with two girls and I have seven sisters, a guy learns how to avert his eyes."

"So what you're saying is-"

"No Yang, I don't peak on my sisters or teammates. Do I look like a pervert to you?"

"Actually-"

"Don't answer that!" Jaune finished getting out of his armour and made for the boys showers, which the school had thankfully decide to not make co ed as well.

The warm water felt amazing over his sore muscles, which had been sore since he started training with Yang. In truth he was more than able to recover throughout the day but then he had training with Pyrrha, which he could recover from over the night, and then he had training with Yang again and the cycle continued.

He had taken to using the steam from the showers to relax his muscles, at least for a few minutes a day, but they were always to short in his opinion. He left the shower and got dressed in schools uniform, stashing his gear away for later.

He ended up leaving the locker room before Yang had even finished her shower, though he knew how long it took for a woman to finish their hair, Yang especially, he did have an abundance of sisters after all. He had learned throughout the years to wake up before the rest if he ever wanted to have hot water and time for a real shower.

* * *

Yang watched eagerly as the two combatants squared off on the stage. Jaune and Cardin had become a pretty common sight and everyone knew who was gonna win, or they thought they did. Their teams cheered him on from the sides, albeit some more than others.

Cardin's own team did much the same as their leader took the stage with a smirk and a roll of the eyes. Jaune looked to his team and let a smile grace his face before moving into a stance ready for combat.

Glynda's arm came down and the match started but neither combatant charged in this time. Unlike the previous matches Jaune waited for his opponent to approach him. Cardin noticed the fact and smirked.

"To afraid to attack me?" When Jaune didn't rise to the bait Cardin frowned slightly. "Fine, doesn't matter anyways." The larger student moved in and made a side strike with his mace expecting to take a large chunk out of his opponents aura and would have, had Jaune not gotten his shield up.

In one motion Jaune caught the mace on his shield at an angle that forced it off to the side, pulling its user with it. With Cardin on poor footing Jaune's sword strike to his side sent him further down the arena.

Rather than pull back Jaune took a second to regain his footing and then pressed his advantage.

Cardin still had his back turned and was working to regain his bearing when Jaune's sword hit his side once more. Cardin swung with his mace to the side and caught Jaune in the chest forcing him back.

Jaune moved across the floor taking a moment to regain his composure, the down side was letting Cardin back on his feet in the process. All sense of smugness was gone, however, once it was clear the fight would not be an easy one.

Cardin took a moment to observe his opponent a little more seriously this time, apparently coming up with a plan on how to beat him, and charge in once more.

Cardins strike was over extended and exaggerated, any combatant with experience would have been able to tell it was a faint but sadly Jaune didn't have that experience. He went to block the mace by bringing his shield up to cover his face but blocked his vision in the process. Cardin redirected the strike to the side, hitting Jaunes shield out of his hand and taking a decent chip off his aura. The second strike was far worse.

Cardin brought his mace to the side and swung with full force, Jaune was still trying to recoup after the loss of his shield and was unready for the blow. He was thrown to the side of the arena with a massive hit to his aura.

Jaune went to stand up but by the time he got to his feet Cardin was upon him once more with a similar strike. The rest of the fight was much the same, with Cardin pushing his advantage and Jaune unable to gain his bearings.

The match was called and both combatants made their way back to their respective teams. Cardin was met with his own cheer and applause while Jaune was complimented on his improved performance.

"You did well Jaune, you have improved quite a lot." It was his partner who was most outspoken with her praise.

"Thanks Pyr, but I still lost." Jaune said it matter of a factly.

"Don't talk like that Jaune. You're improving really fast!" Ruby usually came in second with her encouragement. "I'm sure you'll be really good… not that you aren't any good now." Ruby stammered on, constantly trying to correct herself and make the complement sound less like an insult.

"You're doing better vomit boy." Yang couldn't resist the critical side of her mind however, "You need to keep up the momentum, learn your pacing. Keep working on when to attack and when not to."

"He did quite well." Pyrrha, as always, coddled him.

* * *

Jaune felt the strike hit his shield with a surprising amount of force, or so it had been at first. He was used to such hits by now. Pyrrha was a devastating opponent.

He fell back as she took another swing at his shield. Rather than block the hit he moved in the hope she would overextend and leave herself vulnerable for an attack, he caught no such break.

After several repeats of the action, with similar results, Jaune finally went on the offensive. To be fair that was partly an insult to the word. What really happened was that Jaune had grown tired of taking hits with nothing to show for it and had decided to take the hit to offer one of his own in turn.

He brought his sword up with all the force his body would allow and was rewarded by Pyrrha taking a step back to dodge. When he pressed his attack, however, she was caught off guard. Rather than fall back into the defensive stance he had held a second ago he pressed forward with his shield, slamming it into his opponents own. He was able to push her back for a moment. A moment when only brute strength had been factored into the equation, but the longer the two stood there in interlock the more the balance weighted in his partners favour.

As his partner gained the upper hand and launched a retaliation attack however, Jaune did something unexpected. He took the hit from her sword directly to his shoulder, rolling it in a way as to reflect most of the force off of it, though is still took a small chunk out of his aura. When the attack failed to connect to the level Pyrrha had expected however, it left her open for another attack from Jaune.

His grip was perfect, as was his stance, the amount of force behind the blow was at the limit of what he would be able to control and his aim was true. It was because of all this he was so surprised when he missed.

Through a feat of acrobats he couldn't hope to match he had missed his target and as a result left himself far more open then his opponent had on her previous attack. Pyrrha's retaliation was relentless.

Jaune collapsed to the rooftop with a sigh and a groan. He pulled up his scroll to take a look at their auras and was not surprised by what he saw. He had only managed to land one or two good hits on her, most of which were towards the end, while she had managed to tear him apart. Their auras reflected as such with him nearing the red and Pyrrha still firmly in the green.

Pyrrha sat beside him with a huff. Both of the combatants had been covered in sweat and bruises, though Jaune sported more of the latter, and were content to merely sit and enjoy the view.

The top of the dormitory had quickly become one of his favorite spots, not only for the view but for the company that he usually had while up there. His partner really was something else. He counted himself lucky.

"So… give me the rundown." Jaune was the first to break the silence.

Pyrrha thought for a moment, one which seemed to stretch on longer than was needed, though he couldn't find it in himself to complain. "You have improved substantially, you can almost keep par with me on defensive terms." His partner, ever the polite one, left out his utter failures of an offense.

"I think the additional training has really helped." Jaune chuckled softly to himself. "Yang isn't as skilled as you but man can she hit hard." He shook his head at the memories.

Pyrrha was silent for a moment. "Yang really has helped you improve. She… is a skilled combatant." Jaune thought he heard a bit of a clipped tone towards the end, but he must have imagined it.

"Do you want to do anything else tonight or are we turning in?" Jaune sighed contently.

"I would like to rest here a bit longer, the breeze is nice." A small blush appeared on the champions cheeks. "Y-you could stay too, I wouldn't mind the company."

"That sounds like a good idea actually, I like the quiet." Jaune loved his team, even Nora, though she was… eccentric at times.

Pyrrha leaned against him slightly for warmth, the adrenaline of combat fading and leaving the body slightly cooler. Jaune failed to notice the content smile on his partners face.

* * *

Yang clutched the controller in her hand in frustration as the character on screen was thrown from the platform, again. A smile was brought to her face the second Ruby squealed in victory, even though she had beaten her a dozen times it seemed the joy never left her. Still, losing sucked and a person could only take so much of it before admitting defeat.

"Alright, I'm done for the night. Fifteen loses is where I draw the line." Yang stood and moved over to her bed.

Ruby wined but made to do the same. The lights were turned off a few minutes later, though Yang was still flipping through her scroll checking messages and setting her alarm. She was about to go to sleep when another message came in.

_Vomit Boy: Nora wanted to go see a movie in Vale, something about ninjas and explosions, it kind turned into a team thing. She wanted to invite you guys but left it to me to do the actual inviting. _

Yang took a moment to think. In truth it sounded kinda fun. A night out with friends usually was exciting, especially when one of those friends was Nora. She sent him a message saying she would love to but doubted Weiss and Blake would, but she would ask in the morning. She hadn't expected a reply but she got one anyways.

_Vomit boy: Look forward to it. Goodnight._

Yang sent him the same before setting her scroll down and slipping off to sleep.

* * *

**Authors Note: That's it for the actually story, now for my rambling in the notes. **

**I'm really glad people seem to like the story, I was very much unprepared for such a quick following. Though I am certainly not complaining. **

**That said I hope I can keep you all interested in the story. I still have a lot to learn about writing and this story was meant to serve as a test. I have a sketch of the plot line all typed out already to follow and make my job easier, something I haven't done for my other fics aside from just a basic idea of what the fic is. **

**I'm also trying a different uploading style, I actually have chapter three mostly done already and am planning on uploading it once chapter four is ready. The hope is it will allow me to correct for any mistakes pointed out in the comments. **

**I always love hearing from readers and encourage you all to review so I can improve accordingly. **

**Sincerely SE**


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors Note: Again, nothing to say.**

* * *

Jaune had become rather fond of Vale, though he still wasn't a fan of the large crowds. Growing up in Ansel always felt so quiet and lonely… okay, it was rarely quiet _or_ lonely. Seven sisters meant things were always loud, heated, and (usually) overly dramatic. The point was that the small settlement rarely had anything going on. Vale just had so much... everything. From the buildings and skyscrapers to the sheer amount of things to do for entertainment, it was overwhelming at times.

Now was not one of those times.

The docks were pointedly _not_ where Jaune had intended to spend his Friday afternoon, and yet, here he was. At the docks. He blamed Yang, and not in the typical 'her puns ruined my life' kind of way, this time, the overly eccentric blonde really _was_ to blame.

Jaune had been alerted via scroll message that he was going to accompany team RWBY to the docks today, he had not been asked or invited, but told. Yang had said to invite team JNPR, and that was what he had done, but he himself was not allowed to say no. A few short months ago that might have caused him to get all bothered and think this was supposed to be something more, hell a few weeks ago he might have thought that, but not anymore. It wasn't Yang's style.

She wanted him to come along so she wouldn't be driven into a boredom induced coma by Weiss. He was meant to be her entertainment for the afternoon, he wasn't quite sure how to feel about that.

Almost as soon as the two teams had linked up, and Weiss had said what they would actually be doing, Nora had stolen Ren away to go to a local arcade. Pyrrha had offered to stay with him, the perfect partner that she was, but he had insisted she go and have some fun. She rarely relaxed and Nora was sure to help her do that… okay maybe relax was the wrong word. Whatever you called it, Pyrrha would return exhausted.

So in the end he was just a fifth wheel to four teenage girls. Yang, Ruby and him chatted most of the way to the docks, with the occasional comment from Blake who otherwise stuck to herself. On their way there however, they noticed a storefront that appeared to have been robbed.

That was where the day had really started to go down hill. Weiss and Blake very clearly had different opinions on the matter and it was a topic the other three were very much not willing to broach. Jaune had thought the argument was killed before it could start, death via a blonde monkey faunus with fantastic abs, but like so many things in life, he was wrong.

"Stop calling him that!" Jaune didn't really know blake all that much, but he was fairly certain the tone she took was not a normal one. Yang and Ruby's faces confirmed his suspicion. "Stop calling him a scoundrel, stop calling him a degenerate!"

The random girl Weiss had run into, Penny if he heard her name correctly, seemed to be enjoying the show, as did many passersby. Jaune was just trying to step away and blend into the woodwork slightly to avoid being dragged into the debate.

Weiss scoffed at the idea. "Would you like me to stop referring to the trash can as a trash can, or this lamp post as a lamp post?"

The argument got worse from there. Most of the points Jaune didn't really understand and he was more than content to let the two argue it out on their own for a while. The problem was that they kept going the rest of the day. He must have heard the same point made a hundred times.

Things didn't get much better when the rest of team JNPR returned from the arcade to meet up with them.

"I don't understand how you can say that!?" Weiss

Yang offered him an out a few minutes after, when it was clear the two bickering girls had no intention of stopping. Jaune offered an apology to Yang before doing the most heroic and oldest of actions taken by men for centuries, he ran away from the yelling females.

Jaune couldn't quite put his finger on it, but the action felt wrong. Not because of some false sense of pride, his had died and been buried long ago, but because he felt he should have helped deescalate the situation somewhat. Instead he had left Ruby and Yang to deal with the two alone.

He just hoped the two were able to find some common ground and stop the argument. He eventually shook his head at the concern, after all, what was the worst that could happen?

* * *

"So she just left?" Jaune picked his shield up to block an incoming punch. "She didn't say anything before running off?"

Beacon was many things, calm was rarely one of them. Between the eccentric and overly dramatic students to the threat of death via the grimm, things were rarely boring. Today it seemed that the overly dramatic would be the focus.

"Nope" Yang accented her answer with a follow up punch to his side that he was able to step away from.

Her attacks, usually fast and devastating, were slow and weak today. Jaune couldn't tell if it was her being tired, distracted, or both. The punches still hurt, a lot, but they lacked the same energy as their other training sessions.

"Shouldn't you guys be, you know, out looking for her?" He regretted it the second it left his mouth, and even more when the fist smashed into his face launching him several feet back and onto his ass. It didn't take him but a moment to get up, knowing full well what would happen if he didn't.

"We were!" Yang's eyes flashed red as she pursued him. Perhaps it was a sign of how angry the statement had made her but her defence was far sloppier than it had been the past few weeks. "All weekend!"

Jaune stepped to the side and dodged her first punch and just barely brought his shield up in time to stop her second one. He stepped to the side again and dodged her knee and watched as she realised what happened.

Jaune brought his sword down over her arm and forced her to pull back slightly. As she attempted to disengage however he brought his leg up in a sweep, taking Yang's legs out from under her.

It was the first time he had actually managed to defeat her. It wasn't nearly as relieving as he thought it would be.

Jaune's breath came out heavy as he sheathed his sword and offered a hand to help her stand, she didn't take it. He couldn't help but notice her own breathing was steady and she seemed to barely be tired from the work out.

"Weiss and Ruby are back in the room waiting to see if she'll come back." Yang draped her arm over her eyes. "I don't even know if Weiss cares… no actually I do, she doesn't care." Yang let out a deep sigh. "There are just to many places she could be."

Jaune moved over a nearby bench and grabbed a bottle of water for each of them. "I could help, if you want. I know the rest of my team would also be willing."

Yang moved her arm and looked at him as he offered her the water. "Sorry, it's too personal a matter to have another team help."

Yang leaned back down onto the floor as if to end the conversation there, Jaune decided to respect her opinion and began to move away. He stopped just before he stepped out of the door. "If you change your mind, just ask. You've helped me a lot... I'd like to return the favour."

* * *

It hadn't taken long for his offer to be taken up on. Yang had sent him a message asking if team JNPR would be willing to help them find Blake, Jaune had asked the rest of his team, all of whom were happy to help.

Ren and Pyrrha had stayed back at the school incase Blake went back there while Jaune and Nora met up with the rest of team RWBY in the city.

"Weiss, you're not helping." Ruby was currently the one leading the way.

"You know who might be able to help? The police." Jaune could feel the anger at that remark, not just from Ruby but Yang as well. "What? It was just an idea."

"Yeah a bad one." Ruby mumbled under her breath and continued down the street.

"We could always just break the policeman's legs if they tried anything!" Nora's comment went ignored, thankfully.

Weiss' comment did bring some concern to the forefront, and that was the reason why Blake had run. Yang had been… vague… on the details. Weiss' comment hinted at this being larger than he had expected, but he buried any question he had and trusted Yang's judgment on the matter.

"Weiss, I think we should hear her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions." surprisingly it was Yang who became the voice of reason, and was promptly shot down in traditional Beacon fashion.

"I think, when we hear it, you'll all realise I was right." Weiss was unwilling to listen to reason.

"And I think Weiss' hair looks wonderful today." Jaune felt his heart jump into his throat at the additional voice, apparently so to did everyone else.

"Ah!" The group turned to see the orange haired girl from Friday standing not three feet behind them. How none of them had noticed Jaune didn't know. What made even less sense was that Nora was actually standing _behind_ the girl and had not seen fit to warn them.

"Penny! Where did you come from!?" the conversation that followed was mostly a recap of what Jaune had already known, except for one detail.

"Blake's a faunus?" Thankfully Jaune didn't seem to be the only one who was confused.

"Affirmative." Penny bobbed her head while the rest just stood in silence. It was Nora who spoke first.

"That. is. Adorable!" Nora proceeded to gush over the fact mostly to herself while the rest continued to work it out in silence.

"She does like tuna a lot." Ruby whispered to no one in particular.

Penny waited a moment to let them process before speaking again, drawing everyone but Nora back to the conversation. "So, where is she?"

"We don't know, we haven't seen her since Friday."

"That's terrible, friend Ruby!" Jaune was starting to wonder if there were a few screws loose in the girls head. "Don't worry, I won't rest until we find your teammate!"

Ruby seemed completely unprepared to deal with the situation. "That's really nice of you and all but we're okay, right guys?" She looked to her side for her loyal teammates in the hope they would have better advice.

Jaune wasn't sure when Weiss and Yang had left, but they had done so flawlessly. In truth he should have done the same, but made the mistake of being a kind person. Ruby looked to him and Nora for help, Jaune made the mistake of letting Nora speak first.

"We would looove the help!" Jaune and Ruby both let out a sigh as Nora began a conversation with the new girl.

_Yep, should have run off with Yang. _

The rest of the evening was long and turned up very little results. Nora and Penny had separated off to go search a few of the store fronts Jaune felt slightly guilty about offloading Penny onto his teammate but Nora seemed to be more than friendly with her… in fact, Jaune was starting feel a tiny bit sorry for Penny, Nora was great and all but she could be a handful at times.

Jaune focused on his task about the same time the explosion rang out.

"Oh, no." Jaune couldn't help but agree with his team RWBY counterpart, he knew Blake would be at the blast

Jaune sent a message to Nora's scroll to let them know where they were heading and to meet them there. Jaune and Ruby arrived just in time to watch Blake and another faunus get beaten back and separated by their opponent. It looked like they had been fighting for a little bit, judging by the numerous downed terrorists.

Jaune knew the story behind the person they were fighting. Roman Torchwick was a well known name, even to him… ok, he only knew of him because Ruby had told them the story about her fighting him in a store, but still, he knew what the criminal looked like. Thankfully he hadn't noticed them yet and they might still have the element of su-

"Hey!" Jaune slapped a hand to his face in disappointment. The crook looked up to them and and turned his attention away from the downed faunus.

_She couldn't have fired a sniper shot or something to take advantage of the surprise… just had to go with a dramatic entrance? _

"Hello Red. Isn't it past your bedtime?" Ruby looked back to him for a moment to say something and the crook took advantage of it.

Jaune had already drawn his sword and was in the process of turning his sheath into a shield as they approached, thankfully he was still looking at the criminal and was able to start moving before the shot was taken. He pushed Ruby aside and absorbed the shot on his shield. It exploded against the metal and sent a lance of pain through his arms but did no actual damage.

He wasn't quite so lucky when the follow up shot came. The crook had adjusted his aim to compensate for the shield and landed a round directly at Jaune's feet. He wasn't sure when it happened but he went from standing on the building, to flying through the air for a moment, to falling rather quickly towards the ground.

It was at that moment a thought popped into Jaunes head.

_I still need to perfect a landing strategy. _

The quickly approaching pavement didn't seem to be willing to wait for him to do so.

* * *

**Authors Notes: don't hate me for the cliffhanger, it had to be done! **

**I want to ask you all a question, one that will alter a few things in the story. There will be no Arkos this ship, if you haven't guessed yet, and that means Pyrrha will be alone. This is unacceptable! SHE DESERVES BETTER! And so I ask you, the audience. Would you like me to throw in a ship with Pyrrha either as a part of this story or a story of its own? Let me know your thoughts in the reviews.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter.  
****Sincerely SE **


	4. Chapter 4

**Authors Note: The script originally called for this chapter and last chapter to be one but it didn't pan out that way, works better this way. **

**Enjoy **

* * *

Jaune had finally been right about something, he still hadn't perfected a landing strategy, and this time no spear was sent by a champion class fighter to aid him… life was cruel like that sometimes.

Jaune landed into a poor roll and twisted back onto his feet. It was far from graceful and left his bones feeling like they had been broken but he was standing. It took about half a second for him to realise he was now on ground level with the person who had attacked him. In addition to the already bad situation, several of the bullheads had decided he was worth the ammo to shoot at.

Thankfully his shield stopped most of the projectiles from hitting and those that made it past stopped at his aura. One of the bullheads moved back and was about to fire when something hit its engine and sent it smashing into the warehouse. Jaune looked up to see Ruby taking shots at the other bullheads who were now rethinking going on a direct path to shoot him.

His luck had apparently felt bad for abandoning him.

Jaune's moment of ease was short lived however, as soon as it was clear the bullheads were busy the far more dangerous threat set his sights on Jaune.

Roman Torchwick left the fight with Blake and the other guy to some of the White Fang grunts and made his way over to where Jaune was currently standing. He hoped that the criminal's plan was to just disengage with the two competent combatants and leave via bullhead, it would make sense to cut his losses, that way Jaune wouldn't have to fight him and th-

"Jaune! Don't let him get away!" Or Ruby could force him to fight a criminal way out of his league.

_I'm not gonna do it, I'm not gonna do it… aw hell, I'm gonna do it._

Jaune put himself firmly in between Roman and one of the bullheads, stopping the crook from retreating. He spent a moment to look the man over more thoroughly. He used a cane that also functioned as a gun of some kind, but other than that he didn't seem to have any other weapons. Jaune had the advantage both in weapon and armour.

Surely that would be enough, right?

Jaune learned quickly that he was wrong once again. The flamboyant man had hooked his cane around the corner of his shield and almost ripped it out of his hands in one move. It took everything Jaune had to not let go, and it quickly became clear that not letting go was probably a mistake.

Jaune was pulled forward, directly into his opponents waiting fist. The gut punch left him lost for air and unprepared for the follow-up wack with the man's cane, sending him hurtling past to the ground.

He had enough common sense to twist over and throw himself back onto his feet to ward off the next attack, but none came. Instead, Torchwick kept walking. For a moment Jaune thought about letting him, in a few short seconds the guy had completely thrown him around. Jaune steaded his shield and rushed back after the man.

The crook seemed to hear him and let loose a heavy sigh before turning to face him. "I have places to be, kid. Could you just hurt yourself or something?" Torchwick dodged Jaunes thrust with his sword and sighed again. "Guess that's a no."

He brought his cane up and hit the underside of Jaune's chin causing him to stagger. He flicked his cane around in his hand to get a better hold on it and smashed it into the side of Jaune's arm.

Jaune's arm ached as he tried to hold onto the blade. The follow up attack struck the same spot, as did the next one. Jaune turned to put his shield up and block any follow-up attacks, but in doing so lost sight of his opponent.

Crocea Mors arched over his shield and down with as much force as Jaune could manage, only to miss the criminal entirely. This time when the cane came down it hit Jaune's wrist and he was unable to keep a grip on his weapon. The blade had barely left his hands before Jaune was being pushed back away from it.

The criminal's hits hurt more than almost anything Jaune could imagine. The sheer force behind them was far more overwhelming than most spars, but not all of them. The next strike that came hit Jaune in the shoulder, he rolled his arm back to redirect the energy, something his opponent didn't seem prepared for, before stepping forward and charging him with his shield.

The second Jaune made contact and had lifted his opponent off his feet, Jaune forced his shield to the side throwing Torchwick to the ground.

It was at this moment Jaune was faced with the deadliest opponent he had ever faced; choice. He could either go back to his sword and retrive it or he could press his advantage against the now on the ground criminal.

Jaune turned to go after his weapon and got about two steps away before something hooked around his ankle and pulled it back, causing him to fall face first onto the hard ground. He flailed his arms in an attempt to catch himself but only succeeded in losing grip on his shield as it too went sliding away from him. The air was forced from his lungs as he finally impacted the ground.

Jaune stayed on the ground a moment attempting to catch his breath before being violently turned over, both of his arms being throw out to his sides, before taking an immediate punch to the side of his face, followed by another and another. Jaune brought his own fist up and strike his attacker in the underside of his chin, almost succeeding in knocking the man off, before the limb was batted away and the punches resumed.

He again tried to force his opponent off of him, succeeding in part before something struck the criminal from the side throwing him off and giving Jaune a moment to breath. A hand came down and pulled Jaune to his feet.

Blake stood by watching Torchwick while the blonde man, Jaune didn't know his name, was the one to help him. It was at this moment he realized that the three of them were standing between the criminal and his escape vehicle, the bullhead behind them.

"You good to move?" Jaune stood up a little straighter and nodded. "Name's Sun by the way." Sun offered Jaune a hand before remembering where they were and turning his attention back to the criminal.

"No no, don't stop on my account. By all means." The criminal stood a little taller and dusted some dirt off of his coat before nodding in their direction. "This has been fun and all but I believe it's time for me to be off."

Another bullhead came in from the side and began firing on them. Sadly Jaune still hadn't retrieved his shield and so was left with little other choice except to run for cover. The guy who had helped him up did so as well but Blake seemed to have far more difficulty making the choice, in the end she followed them behind one of the containers.

The bullhead wasn't able to stay long before some kind of energy beam went through one of its engines, but the damage had already been done. Torchwick made it to the bullhead and the three on ground level watched helplessly as it slipped out over the ocean.

They had failed.

* * *

The police had come mere moments after Roman had escaped and helped round up the remaining terrorists. They had also been on the verge of arresting everyone else, until they found out they were from Beacon.

In the end Jaune, Blake, Ruby, and Sun had been given a light reprimanding about calling the police next time and not burning down a part of the docks. None of the police looked liked they believe them when they said they'd keep that in mind. The officers left them to go deal with terrorists instead, apparently finding them to be of more sane company. Jaune couldn't blame them.

Penny and Nora had apparently shown up towards the end of the fight and helped Ruby take down the bullheads. Yang and Weiss had trickled in a few minutes later.

Everyone present was on edge as Blake and Weiss approached one another. Ruby had attempted to intervene and talk to Weiss before an argument could break out but was ignored.

The two huntresses stared at each other for a moment before Blake finally spoke. "Weiss, I want you to know that I am no longer associated with the White Fang. Back when I was wi-"

"Stop," Weiss interrupted her teammates explanation and paused for a moment. "Do you know how worried you made Ruby? Or your partner for that matter?"

The question seemed to catch everyone off guard, not just Blake.

The question was apparently rhetorical and Weiss was quick to continue. "Of course not, you didn't think about them when you decided to run, did you? We spent twelve hours in this damned city looking for you. Twelve hours!" Weiss took a second to calm down and lower her voice. "In that twelve hours I've come to a realization" She paused, putting practically everyone on edge as she waited to finish her sentence. Jaune noticed Ruby look to her sister for some sign or clue, but apparently even Yang was lost. "I don't care."

"Boo, what a tease." Nora once again went ignored as the rest of the group focused on the discussion between an ex terrorist and the heir to the SDC, which was a slightly more entertaining display. Only slightly.

"You don't care?" Once again, Blake seemed entirely caught off guard and unprepared for the simple answer.

"You said you weren't a part of them anymore, right?" This time, the question did not seem to be rhetorical.

"No. No, I haven't been sin-"

"I don't wanna hear it." Weiss was quick to shut her down, again. "All I want to know, is that next time something like this happens you don't leave your team to worry. Trust your team enough to come to us about something like this and not some… someone else."

Blake wiped at her eyes discreetly. "Of course."

There was a moment of pause as the tension dissipated.

"Yes! Team RWBY is back together!" Ruby began celebrating immediately, Nora joined in as soon as the mood shifted.

* * *

The conversation moved on to a lighter tone after that. Tales of battle and heroism were shared, mostly by Nora and Ruby, and the nights events recounted.

"Me and Jaune..." Yang, along with everyone else, ignored Weiss' grammar correction and focused on the story. "were looking around the city for Blake when the first explosion went off. We pretty much immediately knew that was where Blake was" Yang ignored the squawk from her partner at the comment. "and so we ran here as fast as we could. When we arrived, what do we see?…" Ruby paused for dramatic effect, something Yang thought largely ineffective given everybody knew the outcome. "Roman Torchwick standing over Sun, about to fire a shot!"

The group gasped in awe while the man in question blushed in embarrassment.

Ruby resumed as if the interruption never happened. "I had to act fast, so I grabbed the criminal's attention-"

"By literally yelling a greeting instead of firing a shot or something." Ruby blushed as Jaune said that part, a tidbit Yang planned to take Ruby to task for later after they had time to party a little.

A blushing Ruby attempted to pick the story back up. "I looked back to Jaune for a moment and Roman fired a dust round directly at us." Yang logged that one away as well, Ruby would be better than that, or else. "Jaune saved me by pushing me to the side and taking the shot on his shield!"

It was the blonde knights turn to blush. "Well I-um"

"Torchwick fired another shot and brought Jaune down to the ground level after that. I didn't see much of their fight, I was too busy trying to take out the bullheads." Ruby shrugged softly as if her own job had been any less impressive. "From what I saw though, he did really good!"

"I didn't really do that much." Jaune rubbed a hand against the back of his head. "Torchwick was trying to get past me, he didn't even see me as a threat really. He only focused on me because I was between him and his getaway vehicle." He chuckled nervously.

"You still did great Jaune." This time it was Yang to give him praise. "You helped Ruby and even fought off a renowned criminal! Be proud!" She socked him in the arm softy.

"It really wasn't anything. I could barely hold my weapon for half of it." Yang hated it when he talked so negative about himself. One of the first things she had tried to teach him was confidence in his abilities. "A better fighter probably would have been able to stop him. I was pretty much useless."

"Torchwick fought off Blake and Sun at the same time. You did good!." Jaune smiled indulgently at Ruby but it was clear he didn't believe her words.

That negative outlook would never do. Yang grabbed him by the arm and turned him to the side, planting a soft kiss on his cheek. Jaune froze, his cheeks warming up to a bright red the same shade as Ruby's cape. As did the rest of their group.

"You're not useless. You fought off the big bad crime boss and helped save the damsel in distress, sounds like a badass to me." She let go of him and took a few steps forward into the, now stopped, crowd of hunters in training. "Don't read into it Vomit Boy."

* * *

**Authors note: Is it clear what ship this story is yet? **

**O.M.G THEY KISSED! ARE THEY GETTING MARRIED YET?! ITS OFFICIAL THEY"RE GONNA F- I'll stop you right there. Nothing is official and there is a lot more to romance than a kiss, keep in mind how Yang felt when delivering the kiss as well as her reasoning why. I ask you to be patient and not think I ruined the pacing. **

**I hope you enjoyed**

**Sincerely SE**


	5. Chapter 5

**Authors Notes: Sorry for the longer wait then normal, I'll try to not let that happen again.**

* * *

The day after the docks felt like it had stretched on far longer than normal, it didn't help that it was a monday. Jaune's body ached and he could feel every bruise and to top it all off, it was a _monday_.

News had spread overnight about what had occurred at the docks, not about Blake's actions in starting it however. The rumours only said that the group had interfered with actual criminals and stopped the theft of millions of lien of dust. The stories also hyped up Jaune's actions quite a bit.

All in all the story kept a lot of people entertained and it seemed to be quite amusing to most of the student body how such a poor combatant like Jaune Arc could fight a criminal like Roman Torchwick and survive.

One person who wasn't amused however, was Professor Goodwitch. "You are all very lucky. Roman Torchwick is not an opponent anyone should fight unprepared for. You are luckier still that the headmaster was the one to decide your punishment and not myself!" Team RWBY along with Jaune and Nora had been brought to the headmasters office once they had time to rest.

"You endangered the lives of not only your own team, but those of another." The headmaster paused to drink from his coffee and directed his attention to Team RWBY "It is the duty of a team to stick together, and had it just been your team I might have let the issue pass, it was not however." He paused once more and turned to Jaune and Nora. "Tell me, why did you go with them?"

The room was silent a moment before Jaune realized it wasn't a rhetorical question. He thought a moment but failed to come up with anything that sounded like a good excuse, in the end he settled for the truth. "Our friends asked us to help, so we helped."

The headmaster hummed in curiosity but stayed silent for a moment.

Jaune was slow to continue. "We didn't know we would be fighting anyone at the time but even had I known… I still would have gone."

"You would have placed your teammates at risk?" The headmaster didn't say it as an accusation, nor did he sounds disapproving. It was merely a question.

"I didn't force them to come last night and I wouldn't have forced them either way. I asked them and they said they wanted to help… all though, we probably would have brought Pyrrha had we known there was gonna be a fight." Jaune rubbed a hand against the back of his head. "She would have done far better than I did." he chuckled softly but failed to notice the glares from basically everyone else in the room at his self-deprecation.

The headmaster leaned back in his chair. "I applaud your willingness to aid your friends, it is something sorely lacking in today's generation, but you could have called the school or chosen not to engage your opponent. Instead, you rushed in unprepared and out matched." The headmaster kept his eyes locked on Jaune's until the younger boy looked away. "So tell me, what were you thinking Miss Belladonna?"

Jaune didn't seem to be the only one surprised by the sudden change of focus, the girl in question was caught off guard for a moment before regaining her composure. "There were criminals at the docks, it's the job of a huntress to fight not only grimm but criminals as well."

"And yet you are only a huntress in training. Torchwick is a foe far beyond you, you should have known that before seeking him out." The headmaster sighed heavily. "You were very lucky he was so distracted, had he truly wanted to, or had he not been in a rush, he could have killed you. Think how your team would feel learning their friend had ran off and died in Vale. A tragedy they could have easily stopped from happening."

Blake seemed shaken by his words, and for a moment it seemed that Yang was actually going to be the one to defend her before the accused finally decided to defend herself. "This isn't about them, it was my responsibility to dea-"

"Would that have brought them any comfort?" The headmaster sighed once more. "You are all dismissed. Miss Belladonna will be receiving detention for the issue, as will her team to a lesser extent. Mr Arc and Miss Valkyrie, you will receive no such punishment."

"I-I don't know if that's really fair." The words had left Jaune's mouth before he could stop them. "Yang and Weiss weren't even there for the fight, they didn't show up until after. If they are supposed to be punished than I should as well."

The headmaster seemed slightly surprised but quickly hid it behind a neutral expression. "Very well, Mr Arc" Jaune both was both happy and upset that his words had taken effect, the loss of his free time was gonna suck but it was only right. "Miss Belladonna will be the only one to receive detention, the rest of you will receive no punishment." Those… were not the words he had expected, those weren't the words anybody expected.

Jaune opened his mouth to ask the headmaster why but felt two hands latch over it, along with hands grabbing his arms and pulling him back from the desk.

"Thank you headmaster, we won't forget what you said." Ruby was the first one to speak. Weiss had said something more formal and Blake had followed them out. Yang and Nora had practically thrown him into the elevator to stop him from ruining their lucky break.

* * *

"I still can't believe he talked us out of detention." Ruby repeated what they had all been saying for the last three hours. "I mean, that was the headmaster _and_ Miss Goodwitch… How?!"

"I wouldn't say he talked us out of it." Weiss was quick to argue, as she always was. "You heard the headmaster, we were hardly getting any detention anyways."

"No detention beats any detention, Ice Queen." Yang was relaxing on her bed, enjoying the relaxation for what it was. While it was a monday the classes for the day were already over, Beacon's courses were fairly simple. The upper years had a few more classes but most of the day was free periods meant to encourage training and studying. Neither of which Yang needed nor wanted to do at the moment.

Weiss sent a glare Yang's way before a small predatory smirk appeared on her face. "So Yang… about that kiss yesterday-" Yang winced as Ruby practically snapped around, being reminded of the discussion they hadn't had time for yesterday.

"There's nothing to talk about!" Yang tried in vain to stop Ruby from bursting, sadly in vain.

"Does this mean you two are dating? Are you in love? Oh why didn't you tell me you were in love? Don't you trust me anymore? Is this why you two are off every night 'training'?" The questions came rapid fire with little room for answers.

"I would hardly call it a kiss and it doesn't mean anything. You all heard the way he was talking about himself, I was just trying to get his attention." Yang rolled over on her bed in a futile attempt to end the conversation.

"You could have helped him without making out with him." Weiss once again fed the fire. Was this payback for all the puns?

"It was _one _kiss! On the cheek!" Yang sighed and rolled back over to look at the pair of annoying girls. "He's my friend ok. He helped save my partners life, my sisters life, and he was bad mouthing one of my friends. It doesn't matter that that friend was him."

"Hmph, I didn't need saving." Ruby's face contorted into a poor attempt at a scowl. "So you don't have feelings for him?"

"My my, are you jealous dear sister? Afraid I'm gonna steal your man?"

Ruby went a shade darker than her cape. "N-no, Jaune's a friend and that's all." It took a moment for her to regain her composure. "Why did you start hanging out with Jaune all of a sudden anyways?"

Yang shrugged her shoulders slightly, though from her laying down position it wasn't really noticeable. "I wanted to help him train."

"How generous of you." Weiss' deadpan expression betrayed her thoughts at the fact.

"Ok, ok, Blake and I had a bet." Yang shrugged her shoulders again.

"So you aren't really his friend?!" Ruby seemed incredibly hurt at the idea of faking a friendship. "Yang that's not okay you could really h-"

"We're friends now, don't worry. That might be why I started talking with him everyday but it's more than that now." Yang had started to really enjoy his company. Jaune was awkward and a little stiff from time to time but once you got to know him he was a good guy. "The bet is still on though."

Weiss and Blake both stiffened at that response.

Ruby, of course, missed her teammates awkward glances at each other. "What happens if you win?"

"When I win, Blake and Weiss go to that dance together." Jaune was already shaping up nicely. He was far from there but he would make the deadline well before then. "Maybe they'll learn their true feelings for one another, maybe they will fall in love and learn that the reason they disliked each other was because built up sexual te-"

"If she loses she has to get her haircut." Blake filled her in on the totally never gonna happen part.

Ruby gasped in horror. "How is that equal?! Yang, you love your hair!" Her sister failed to see the obvious solution.

"Which is why it's never gonna happen. Besides, he's already loads better than he was. I've practically won already."

"So you're not gonna hold up your end even if you lose?" Yang noticed the trap too late to stop herself from wandering into it. Ruby hated it when her sister went back on a promise or went against her word and she had an annoying habit of never forgetting things like that. The only thing Yang loved more than her hair… okay not the _only_ thing but Ruby was definitely one of those things, she could be a pain sometimes.

Yang sighed. "If I lose, and that is a very unlikely if, I'll hold up my end. Not all of it of course, Blake would die trying. Blake better hold up hers!"

Originally Yang had said it because it was funny, but now? There was a twisted sense of irony in the Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company being taken to a school dance by an ex terrorist. Plus, she would never say it out loud but the two of them would make an _adorable _sight to see… Weiss must never know.

"I'll hold up my end, so long as Weiss isn't to adverse to the idea." Blake looked to the Heiress who was appropriately red faced.

"I-I'll admit I didn't expect my first request to come so soon… Wait! Why should I participate in your bet! What do I get if you lose?" Weiss was always too smart.

"You know how much Yang loves her hair. It's a miracle she agreed at all." Ruby was the one to convince her partner. "She'll be so distracted over the loss of her hair she'll probably even stop making her terrible puns."

"Hey!" None of them had a sense of humour. Yang wasn't sure if she should be thankful for her sisters help.

"I'm in." Weiss worse of all.

"Hey! My jokes are hilarious!" The repressed laughter from the rest of her team did not help her growing frustration.

Yang hopped off her bed and moved to the door. "I'm gonna go punch something."

* * *

Jaune hit the familiar rooftop once again. Pyrrha stepped back and did not pursue her attack, it was only a spar after all. He had requested more training after his complete failure at the docks.

Jaune sighed, both physically and mentally. Yang had made her point pretty clear, he needed to stop being so negative about himself. The kiss had gotten his attention, as well as his hormones attention. A few months ago he would have been over the moon, now it was just par for the course. It was his first real kiss, sure, but he knew it didn't have any real meaning.

It had taken all of three minutes before Nora had practically exploded and told Ren and Pyrrha about it. His partner had asked him about it several different times and it had occupied their battle banter the entire evening.

"You're sure it didn't mean anything?" In truth Jaune wasn't sure why Pyrrha cared so much.

"I'm sure, that isn't Yang's style." His partner helped him up off the ground and fell back into a combat stance. "Besides, I'm not her type."

"Oh, and who would you say is?" Pyrrha ducked under his thrust and retaliated with one of her own.

"She's more into strong people." Jaune pushed his partner back, using his strength and height advantage while he could to move her weapon to the side.

Pyrrha flipped backwards and away from him before abandoning her combat pose and standing straight. "You are strong Jaune. You just need more practice and training, training you're getting right now." She dropped back into a combat pose when her point was made.

"I know, I know." Crocea Mors caught Milo and locked against each other. "You know, you're pretty strong yourself, maybe you should ask Yang out. You know, if she's your type. I wouldn't judge."

Pyrrha was caught off guard by the suggestion and Jaune was able, for the first time ever, to gain the advantage and sweep her legs out from under her. She flipped backwards kicking him in the chin in the process of course, but it was still something.

"That was a good trick." His partner didn't seem upset, in truth she didn't have too much of a reason to be. A gentle smile graced her lips.

"Might have worked on anyone else." Jaune smiled back and sheathed his sword. "I think that's enough for now. Yang will probably want to spar later and I still have a few errands to run." For a split second it seemed like his partners ever present gentle smile fell away, but it must have been a trick of the light.

"That is probably a good call."

* * *

**Authors Note: This chapter is more a necessity than it is interesting, and for that I apologize. Getting Yang and Jaune's thoughts on last chapter are important moving forward and serve a purpose I promise… doesn't change that it's not the most interesting stuff to read. **

**Hot damn I'm bad at writing Pyrrha's lines. Also, I know this story might make it seem like I don't like her but that isn't true, she's actually one of my favourites. This story just kinda forces her to be the butt end… it is how it is. **

**I hope you all enjoyed regardless of the troubles on my end and I encourage you to review to let me know your thoughts.**

**Sincerely SE**


	6. Chapter 6

**Authors Notes: Apologies once again for the longer wait for the last chapter. **

* * *

Of all the gifts the gods had given to humanity school breaks were Jaunes favourites. Time to relax and not have to stress about school work or training or fighting renowned criminals.

The end of the first semester had been rough but the short break had the promise of rest and relaxation. That had been his first mistake.

As soon as Beacon had officially started break, Nora had dragged their entire team into the city to some arcade. Jaune couldn't complain to much really, it was fun and Nora was always worth a laugh, besides their team could use the bonding.

The school had technically closed down entirely, even the dorms. The teachers had made it clear that if anyone absolutely needed the room and board then they could stay but the purpose was to encourage responsibility and a sort of test even over break. It was in a way an assignment over the break, survive. Jaune hated it from the moment he had heard it.

The joke was on the school however, their team had a Pyrrha. She had sprung for two hotel rooms in Vale. They would actually be more comfortable than at the school.

The rest of the team had insisted on contributing to paying for the rooms but Pyrrha had insisted. She mentioned her winnings at the tournaments and the various sponsorship deals she had done over the years, all of which had left her family rich… not Schnee rich of course but more than enough to afford the rooms.

The three other members of their team felt so bad that they refused to let her pay for anything else over the break, much to the red heads embarrassment.

The next few days had been much the same to the first. Arcades, a movie or two, lunch, more arcades thanks to Nora, it was good team bonding.

About halfway through the week they had met up with their sister team. Ruby and Yang had been the only two to actually leave the city, the rest had stayed in Vale for some reason or another, and even then they only went to Patch.

Ruby, Yang, and Ren had all been dragged off to the arcade with Nora the day after their arrival. Blake, Pyrrha, Jaune, and Weiss had all decided against it and grouped up to do something more relaxed. Jaune was pretty sure Weiss only allowed him along because she knew Pyrrha came with him.

Blake had been the one to actually choose where they were going. Jaune was regretting not going along with the hyperactive girl with the grenade launcher.

"There's a library back at Beacon!" Jaune draped himself over a chair set next to one of the bookshelves and complained to his partner. "Why are we here?"

"Reading expands the mind and facilitates learning through other peoples experiences, something you could certainly benefit from." Weiss seemed to realize her words were perhaps a little too rude and corrected herself. "Something we could all benefit from." He was surprised she made the effort to be nice but didn't intend to invite the Ice Queens ire by mentioning it.

"Yang told me about Blake's taste in books, what exactly is she learning from them?" Jaune spoke without thinking and immediately regretted it. Yang had a mixed effect on him, she had certainly helped him become a more effective combatant but her snark had worn off on him and severely impacted his ability to shut his mouth.

Weiss' face went red and Pyrrha had to hold a hand to her face to keep herself from laughing. Blake was thankfully far enough away to not hear his comment and so Jaune would get to live another day.

"T-that is not the point… and my teammates choice in reading material is hardly a subject for us to discuss." Weiss turned to Pyrrha just long enough to start a conversation before walking off. Pyrrha, the ever polite one, was forced to follow or risk being rude.

Jaune gave a mental salute to his partner and let her leave. He rose from his seat to find the person who had lead them here. He wasn't sure where she had disappeared off to, there were a number of bookshelves that interested and made it impossible to see all the way down one lane.

The building was somewhat small but seemed to have a good location as well as a catchy phrase to bring in customers. 'Home to every book under the sun' had a very nice ring to it, Jaune had to admit.

Blake had said something about being a regular here but it wasn't said to Jaune so he wasn't really paying attention at the time.

Jaune found Blake in the back, tucked out of sight and part way into a book already. He took a step over to one of the bookshelves and glanced at the various titles and volumes, letting a minute or two pass in silence before speaking.

"What ya got there?" It was a weak excuse of a conversation started but Jaune had never been called smooth… well, not by anyone other than his mother.

"Nothing good." She set the book back on the shelf and grabbed another one, beginning the process all over again. The silence returned once more, this time Jaune couldn't work up the courage to break it.

Thankfully, Blake had decided to do it for him. "I never thanked you for what you did at the docks." She didn't rise from her chair but she did glance up from her book "Thank you." for all of two seconds before returning her attention to the story within the pages.

"Don't mention it." Jaune shrugged his shoulders softly. "What are friends for?"

"We aren't friends though." Her response wasn't delivered with hatred or disgust, two things Jaune would have expected with words like that, but in more of a matter of factly manner. The words caused him to wince nonetheless. "So it wasn't expected of you."

"We're… friends… ish…" Her deadpan expression in response forced the blonde knight to wince slightly. "W-we're friends, just not close friends." Jaune rubbed the back of his head and turned his attention back to the bookshelf.

"There was a question I wanted to ask you however, if you wouldn't mind?" She waited a moment for him to deny it but when the silence was dragged out she continued. "Why exactly _did_ you help?"

Jaune searched carefully for an answer he didn't have. In truth, he hadn't really thought about it, it just seemed like the right thing to do. "You're a good person, I don't know you real well but that doesn't mean I'd sit by and let you get into trouble."

She didn't seem to believe his reasoning, if he was reading her narrowed eyes correctly. "That's what you told the Headmaster, yes, but what was the real reason?"

Jaune sighed softly. "You might not be my friend but you are Ruby's, and you're Yang's partner and probably _best_ friend, and they are _my _friends. You worried them a lot when you left; they needed help finding you, so I came." Jaune shrugged his shoulders once more. "My team wanted to help because they like your team, they consider you a friend even if you don't return the feeling."

There was a silence once more as Blake thought on his words. "You did it for Yang?"

Jaune blushed slightly and frantically waved his hands. "And Ruby, and not in the way you're implying. She's a friend, nothing more. Ha ha." Jaune chuckled nervously. "Not that they aren't desirable or anything" He immediately regretted speaking. "Not that I've ever thought of them that way of course!" Jaune closed his mouth and shoved a book into his face.

A small smirk appeared on Blake's lips as she returned her attention to her book. Jaune sulked off down the rows away from the embarrassment shortly after.

* * *

The week long break was already mostly over, the days having blended together and flown by in a blur. Yang hadn't really expected anything less, school breaks never felt long enough when you kept yourself busy, and their group had certainly kept themselves busy.

If they weren't sleeping they were out in the city doing something. It had been a nice way to enjoy the week, spending the time among friends was something Yang would never have changed.

With the promise of a new semester at Beacon, the knowledge that the Vytal festival was approaching, and the mounting fear in the city itself, the short break was exactly what they all needed.

"But why now? We can study back at Beacon!" Even as Ruby complained to her partner, Weiss was grabbing their books.

"You need the extra time. Your grades were acceptable enough but you will have to better this semester."The heiress set the two books down on a table in their room.

It had been a rather sudden thing. One moment Ruby and Yang were talking about heading back to Patch and the next Weiss had paid for a room for their entire team. It was actually quite funny considering how she constantly complained about how cramped the dorm rooms were.

She'd never admit it but Weiss had grown attached to them, it was only made more obvious when she blushed and denied it; threatening violence if anyone continued.

"Ice Queen has a point Rubes." Yang sat up on her bed to look at her sister's look of betrayal. "You missed out two years of studying, the head start couldn't hurt."

"Betrayed, by my own sister. What cruelty is this." Ruby whined but opened the book nonetheless.

Yang stood from her bed and slipped out of the room before Weiss could say anything. The hotel they were staying at was definitely one of the better ones, a rather nice and unobstructed view of the city and ocean in the distance.

Weiss had refused to tell them how much to room cost but Yang was sure it wasn't cheap. Team JNPR had a room a few doors down from them but it wasn't there that she found him.

Since the first day they had all started staying in the same building she had figured out where he would sneak off to an hour or so before sunset. The roof wasn't as barren as the one's at beacon where Pyrrha and he trained, this one actually meant to facilitate people for lunch or something.

Jaune wasn't sitting at one of the tables or in one of the comfortable chairs, instead he sat with his legs dangling over the edge looking off into the distance.

It wasn't as quiet as Beacon, the murmur of the city still very much hearable even in the later hour, nor was the view better than the one at Beacon, but it was still a nice scene.

She sat down next to him in silence, just appreciating the view as he was. It was something the two of them had repeated a few times and it was something he did every time his partner and he trained back at Beacon.

After a few minutes of silence a quiet conversation was struck up between them about nothing in particular. It was nice and served as an excellent way to end the last day at break. Tomorrow they were required to be back at school, though the actual lessons wouldn't resume until the day after.

Soon enough they would all fall back into the same routine of training that had occupied their day to day life.

Yang couldn't wait to start sparing again. Her totally willing sparring partner acted far less enthused but even he seemed excited to see what the future held.

* * *

**Authors Notes: I really don't like this chapter but it serves a purpose and I didn't want to do another massive time skip without some kind of content. I'm not all that good at proper filler content but... well here it is none the less. **

**I'd appreciate if you could review and let me know what you all think.  
****Sincerely SE**


	7. Chapter 7

**Authors Notes: Ch seven, here we go.**

* * *

It was nice to be back in Beacon. Yang had enjoyed the short break, it was relaxing and all, but the school was where she belonged. The places energy, the near constant flow of adrenaline, coupled with all her friends being there, it was perfect.

At the moment the group were just sitting in the cafeteria eating their breakfast and chatting amongst themselves.

Nora and Yang were goofing off when her sister finally joined them. She gave some kind of speech about doing something for the day but Yang didn't pay much attention. Nora kept throwing small bits of food for her to catch.

She saw the danger too late to stop it. Weiss stood from the table to say something and Nora pulled her arm back to throw a full pie. The rest of team jnpr seemed to notice the danger as well, hell practically all of Remnant noticed, but failed to stop their teammate from throwing the practical bomb.

Yang watched helplessly as the pie flew through the air, more than once wishing she had professor Goodwitch's semblance. The projectile did not, in fact, hit its intended target, as basically everyone involved knew it wouldn't. Instead it smacked directly into the Ice Queens face, causing her to stop mid word and look to the pan that had fallen to her feet.

Yang felt the "_schneer" _more than heard it. A quiet low rumble that was far louder than the small girl had any right to be able to make.

It was at this moment Yang realized, she done goofed… she totally could have come up with a better pun as her last thoughts.

* * *

The sudden shift from calm to chaos was surprisingly seamless. Jaune wasn't certain who the first person from team rwby to retaliate was but the rest of the room had joined in shortly after.

Jaune dodged a soda can someone had thrown at his direction before being hit by one from behind, the sudden and surprisingly strong force nearly knocking him off his feet.

He looked up to try and find the assailant but they had apparently been driven off already. He scanned the room trying to decide what he was supposed to do. Pyrrha was currently fighting off all of team crdl with ease and slowly working her way to the far side of the room where Nora was… stacking tables? Ren was currently fighting off any students who tried to get near her.

Team rwby had rallied and were working to make their way to Nora, though it seemed like the entire school sat between the two slowing their advance.

Jaune grabbed a plate off the table beside him and began to make his way to his partner, picking up a 'weapon' along the way. He wasn't really sure how to hold the baguette or how useful it would be but Pyrrha found it adequate so… it would probably work.

Jaune didn't know half the people who came at him, nor did they really recognize him. Most of them only stopped to attack him because he was in the way of their intended target, and once he stepped aside, they were all to willing to leave him be.

It was slow going really, but he was making progress. He was almost to his partner when disaster struck.

In a very literal sense, Ruby ran directly into him.

Jaune was sent smashing into the ground while she landed on top of him, forcing his face into the floor even harder.

"Oh, hi Jaune." She didn't try to move nor did she say anything else for several long seconds before she realized the position they were in. Then she practically launched herself up, pulling him with her.

"Thanks." Jaune grumbled. "If you'll excuse me." He took a step to the side and planed to move around her but she stepped in front of him. Jaune sighed and brought his weapon up.

It took all of three seconds for Ruby to disarm him, get him unbalanced, and practically launch him backwards using her semblance. "Sorry Jaune!" She didn't sound all that broken up about it really.

He heard an all to familiar laugh from behind him as Ruby ran off to fight someone else.

"What a tough guy, being beaten by a little girl." Cardin, as always, was taunting him. "How's it feel to know she can whoop you so easily?"

Jaune was surprised by Cardin being there. He had still openly mocked or criticised him since Forever Fall but he hadn't tried to get physical at all. In truth Cardin and his team had kinda faded into the woodwork.

Jaune sighed internally. "Really Cardin? That's the insult you go with?" his bully seemed confused so he continued. "How many times has my partner wiped the floor with your entire team?" Cardin ground his teeth but didn't do anything more. "Hell wasn't she kicking you around just a minute ago? What happened, decide to look for someone who won't give you a challenge?"

"Listen here you arrogant little-" Cardin had taken precisely one step forward before his entire team were literally thrown at him, toppoling the large boy over.

"Hardly made me work up a sweat." Yang and Pyrrha both joined him in watching the team flounder on the ground. Cardin made to stand up and fight but something his partner said made him think otherwise.

Cardin turned around and left, team in tow.

"Aw, and I wanted to beat them up some more." Yang managed to look genuinely disappointed at the let down.

"Thanks Yang." Jaune wasn't sure whether it was her or his partner who had actually done the throwing, but he could make an educated guess. "You too Pyr. He would have wiped the floor with me."

"Don't put yourself down, Cardin is more show than he is actual ability." His partner was there with words of support like always. "Now, if you'll excuse me, Nora is waving me down." true to her words Nora was in fact waving for his partner, the item she was waving just so happened to be a whole table. Pyrrha left in a dash.

"Your team's something else." The blonde did not leave however.

Jaune scoffed at the comment. "You're one to talk. How many teams have ex-terrorists and Schnee heiresses?"

"Touche." Yang shrugged her shoulders and surrendered the point. She paused a moment before going on. "Why do you think you would have lost to Cardin just now?"

"I lose to him all the time, it's not really a secret or something you can argue against."

"You've gotten a lot better since you last fought him, hell you fought off a criminal mastermind since the last time you spared with tall, dumb, and armour-clad." Yang took a few steps in front of him to look into his eyes.

"He's too strong, I don't know how to fight that." Jaune tried once more to give a valid reason, and in his opinion it was a good reason. Cardin could just power through anything Jaune did with brute strength alone, and the rare time he had to parry or block it was like hitting a brick wall.

"That's a little bit better of a reason but it still sounds like an excuse." Yang held a hand to her chin in thought. "Sounds like its training time, Vomit Boy."

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "In the middle of this chaos?"

Yang waved the motion off with a swipe of her hand. "The only two teams here anymore are ours, they'll stay out of the way. Besides it is my job as your sensei to train you!"

Jaune glanced around the cafeteria, which was in complete disarray, and noticed she was right. He wasn't sure when but all the other teams had either left or been driven off like team CRDL.

"This doesn't seem like a good environment for training." Jaune tried one last desperate bid to not fight the brawler and from the look in her eyes she knew what he was trying to do.

"Do you wanna know the secret to fighting people like Cardin and me?"

Jaune wanted to say no, he really did, but his curiosity got the better of him. With a sigh he spoke. "Enlighten me."

"Enlighten me…" Yang dragged the sentence on.

Jaune sighed once more. "Enlighten me, sensei."

"Don't." One word was all she offered.

The silence dragged on between them. "Are you… gonna elaborate?"

A smug grin took over Yangs face. "The problem with strong and aggressive fighters is that it doesn't leave a lot of room for planning. When you're on the offensive, especially when you are an aggressive fighter, it becomes harder to not only plan your attacks but to see what your opponent is planning."

Jaune was surprised by the analysis, it was actually a sound statement that made sense. "Who are you stealing that from?" it was pretty clear the advice wasn't hers.

"My uncle. He made certain to point out Ruby and I's faults whenever he could." Her eyes narrowed a moment latter. "You don't think I can come up with good advice?"

Jaune ignored her question entirely. "So how are we going to practice this?"

"Simple" Yang cracked her knuckles and Jaune was fairly certain he heard his spirit break with them. "Lure me in." She puntucated her sentence with a literal punch to the gut that sent him flying.

Jaune got back to his feet in time to see Yang come flying at him with two full sized, fully cooked, turkeys attached to her fists. They did little to stop the pain on impact.

Jaune scanned the room in search of some kind of motivation. Both of their teams were on the other side of the room, the rest of team rwby laying siege to Castle Valkyrie.

The only plan he could think of was to run to Pyrrha for assistance but he decided against it, that wasn't really the purpose of the lesson. Instead he decided to focus on the first half of that plan, the running part.

It was at this moment Jaune realized something, Yang was _way_ better at running than he was. Jaune threw everything he could grab over his shoulder in the hope of hitting his opponent and slowing her down some. It did a little bit, but that was probably more cause she didn't want to get anything in her hair than any real damage being done.

Jaune scanned his environment once more and devised a… well to call it a plan would be an over exaggeration. Yang had said the best way to fight people like her was to not fight them, to lure them in on your own terms. So he would make the environment fight for him.

He climbed up on the table and started running down the continual line. Yang did the same and jumped up onto the tables. The second she did however Jaune pushed the one she had landed on as hard as he could and succeed in causing Yang to lose her footing and fall forward.

The second she started to fall Jaune threw as much stuff as he had in arms reach at her before running once more. A similar scene repeated each time she got close to him and resulted in him usually taking more damage than her, but he was doing better than he ever did in normal spars.

Jaune was so distracted and focused on his current objective that he failed to notice his impending doom approach.

He wasn't certain what had happened on the other side of the room but the mighty castle that Queen Nora had built was no more and a wall of metal, food, and team JNPR were rapidly approaching, delivered courtesy of one Ruby Rose.

Yang had her back turned to it and didn't seem to hear it coming as she moved into punch him. It was clear she expected him to dodge or twist or do something to mitigate the hit and redirect the damage, possibly even retaliate with some kind of trick, but instead he took the hit and grabbed her arm as tight as he could, holding her in place. She seemed surprised but had already began to break free when the wall hit.

Jaune wasn't sure when he had really been moved but he knew it had happened before he even opened his eyes. The sudden change in view wasn't all that surprising but the view itself was quite shocking.

Jaune had managed to drag Yang into the attack, something she probably wouldn't have been able to dodge anyways but at least this way he got the credit. In doing so he had put her in between himself and the wall of pain that had been approaching, it had seemed like a good idea. Then she had slammed into him with the same amount of force the debris would have.

When he finally managed to become aware again she was laying on top of him. He opened his eyes to something many of the boys in his class no doubt dreamt of, Yang's breasts an inch from his face. He took it in for all of half a second before clamping his eyes shut once more with enough force to physically hurt them, even that had not been fast enough.

"Enjoying the scenery?" Yang's voice was more teasing than it had ever been. She rolled off of him with a sigh. "That was fun."

Both their teams sat there, bodies aching, for a minute or two before standing. When they were all met by the glare of professor Goodwitch however most of them wished they had stayed down.

* * *

**Author's Notes: All that food… such a waste. **

**I have decided to let you all in on the timetable a little bit, if you don't want to know when this story ends stop reading now. I don't plan on writing this story past the dance, though maybe one day I'll give it a sequel. I'm on a bit of a time table and am trying to finish it before mid June though, which means no fall of Beacon this story or at the very least not until a sequel is devised… sorry. **

**Hope you all liked the chapter, let me know in the reviews how I can do better.  
****Sincerely SE**


	8. Chapter 8

**Authors Notes: LETS DO THIS**

* * *

Jaune had expected to get in trouble for the incident, the whole destroying entire tables, columns of stone, and not to mention the food they had waisted. In the end however, they didn't receive so much as one detention, thanks to the intervention of the headmaster. All though the deputy headmistress did not look to be as accepting of the decision.

The two teams had separated out to do various things shortly after. While they had been on opposite sides of their little war, no grudges were held and everyone had a good laugh about it. Yang had dragged him off to continue their little lesson and delve into what he did right and wrong, a discussion which had a surprising amount of the former.

"A few more tricks like that table one, throw in a few good hits and blocks, and you might have beaten me." Yang had draped herself over a couch in one of the general areas in their dorm building. Technically the areas were meant for everyone but most people left as soon as they saw either team RWBY or JNPR approach meaning they usually had the room to themselves. The perks of being socially awkward and driving everyone away... the more he thought about it the less it seemed like a perk.

The relaxed atmosphere was always appreciated though, especially now. The food fight had been strictly for fun of course but that hadn't stopped the normal thrill that came with combat from setting in. Another thing he could blame Yang for, he had started to enjoy that rush just a bit.

"Feeling a tad bit optimistic today are we?"

"Stop it," She sat up and punched him in the arm before laying back down. "you did good."

Jaune sighed but knew not to voice his disagreement.

"You need to stop being so hard on yourself." Yang sighed, sitting up all the way this time. "You've probably improved more than anybody else in our year."

"Only because everyone else was already skilled." He bent over in his chair and kept his eyes locked on anything that wasn't red or lilac.

"Most the fighters here are set in their ways, they have a lot to learn and they aren't doing it because they are 'skilled'. They don't think they have to learn anything. That little fact is what distinguishes between average people and real fighters." Yang dropped more of her uncles wisdom, attempting to pass it off as her own.

"It took me almost half the school year to get this far, I haven't won a single spar in combat class." He had gotten better, he knew that, but he still had a long ways to go. He just wanted to be honest with himself and everyone. He didn't want them to be set up only for him to fail them.

"You've come farther in half a year than most these guys have come in a decade." There was a moment's hesitation before she continued. "Besides, it's not your fault you haven't improved faster."

Jaune failed to understand her meaning. "If not me, than who? I'm the only one to blame."

"Well… Pyrrha kinda failed the whole teaching thing." This time Jaune did look up, she had gained his full attention. "Seeing the progress you've made with some honest criticisms and real experience, not just a beat down followed by a compliment, she could have done way better."

"Pyrrha is the only reason I wasn't kicked out already, it's because of her that I haven't failed my classes, she's the reason I have any sort of hope in combat class." If he sounded a little irritated it's cause he was. Pyr had been nothing but perfect, he knew Yang didn't mean anything by it but Jaune couldn't let his partner be talked down in any way.

"I'm not trying to insult her, she did a good job training you, but seeing the progress you've made over the last few months?" Yang paused a moment to think. "She's a good person and a hell of a fighter, she did some amazing things with you but… she was too polite. She never wanted to tell you what you did wrong, how could you improve if she didn't? She kinda failed to teach you the essentials."

Jaune knew the words were true but he disliked them nonetheless. "She has told me what I can do to improve plenty of times, she was only being kind!" Jaune tried to keep his voice calm.

"I've seen the way she helps you. Every critique she gives is always followed by a compliment or reassurance, that doesn't help much if the real advice gets muddled."

"She knows exactly what she's doing." Jaune once again struggled to keep his voice calm.

"She's knows how to fight, I wouldn't ever say she didn't, but I don't know." Yang shrugged her shoulders softly. "I think she could have done better."

"I knew nothing before she helped me." Jaune stated it how it was. "She taught me everything I know."

"Oh come on, she helped you get better yeah, but really? Everything?" Yang rolled her eyes at what she thought was an over exaggeration. "You had training before Beacon, so she wasn't exactly working from scratch."

Perhaps it was the leftover adrenaline from the food fight earlier, or maybe the annoyance at hearing his friend being insulted, but Jaune made a mistake.

"I never went to a combat school! I didn't have any training! I never trained a day in my life!" It was only after the words left his mouth that he realized what he had done.

Jaune and Yang had gotten close over the last few months but his fraudulent stay at the academy was something he had only told his partner.

He checked around the room to make sure they were alone, which they thankfully were and stood from his chair before walking away. Yang had risen from the couch and had taken a few steps to follow but stopped when she got a good read of his anger, realising to late that she should have backed off.

Jaune tried to check his anger but was unable to do do anything to really calm himself down. Shame, fear and anger wared inside of him, he couldn't decided which he felt more of.

"Bet that won't bite me in the ass." He whispered to himself through clenched teeth.

* * *

Yang was used to anger, that being one of the main driving factor for her fighting style, but she hadn't ever expected to see it from Jaune. He didn't have a calming and quiet demeanor like her partner did nor did he have a cool head like his own partner, quite frankly he was simply slow to anger. That's why his outburst was all the more surprising.

She hadn't meant to sound like she was being unfair to Pyrrha, Yang had nothing but respect for her, but looking back she could see how it might have looked. She had been tired of Jaune always blaming himself, even when he worked twice as hard as most the students their year had.

His combat ability was nonexistent at the start of the year, Pyrrha had been a big help in getting him started but…

Yang released a sigh, she should have worded it better. Pyrrha and Jaune were close friends, and if the champion ever got her way they would be more than that, but their relationship was still something special.

She wanted to go after him and apologies, the only reason she didn't was because she knew he needed time to calm down. That and she needed some time of her own to think.

Jaune had said he hadn't trained a day in his life, that he didn't have _any_ combat experience. That raised a few questions, such as how he got in the school at all.

She didn't doubt for a second, however, that he was able to defend himself now. Regardless of how he got in the school he had earned his place, if not through how hard he trained then his actions. He had turned out to be a rather good strategist when it came to combat, as well as a quick learner when it came to actual technique, but more than that he had shown he had the mentality of a hunter.

That might not be enough for the teachers but it was more than enough for Yang.

Besides, at the end of the day, he was her friend first and foremost.

It didn't stop her from being worried though, that little part of her mind whispering that he wouldn't be able to protect himself or that he would endanger his team. That she should go to the teachers as soon as possible and turn him over.

Yang hated herself for considering the idea on any level. That anger at herself unfortunately reflected onto Jaune with ease.

For the most part Yang had been left alone to war with her choice, few people attempting to talk to her and those who did quickly saw her mood and found something else to do. It had been an hour or two before someone who wouldn't be intimidated found her.

Yang wished it could have been almost any other person.

"Do you mind if we have a talk?" Her ever present smile might have fooled most but something in her eyes mixed with her tone of voice made it clear even Pyrrha didn't want to have this conversation. Though whether that was because the subject or just person she was talking to Yang didn't know.

Yang gestured to the chair sitting across from her spot on the couch but made no move to sit up.

"What you wanna talk about?" Yang had a pretty good idea what it was but she still hopped it could be anything else. She had no such luck.

"Jaune told me about what happened." Yang made to speak but Pyrrha continued before she could interrupt. "He didn't tell me what you said but… he did tell me what he said."

Yang's jaw snapped shut as she realized that she didn't know what to say.

"He made his mistakes, and he paid for them." Pyrrha paused to think on something before continuing. "Cardin found out earlier this year, that was why Jaune was acting so weird before Forever Fall."

"Cardin was blackmailing him?!" Any frustration or anger Yang had towards Jaune redirected in an instant. "Why didn't he tell me? I could have ki-"

"He didn't tell any of us." Pyrrha's shoulders fell slightly for a moment before returning to their normal position. "He took care of it though, as you probably noticed."

Yang thought for a moment and realized she was right. It wasn't something she had noticed at the time but Cardin _had _backed off, there had only really been one or two encounters since Forever Fall. In truth she hadn't really give it any thought, but to know Jaune handled it after everything that happened? She was proud of him, even if it was a while back.

"He told me what he let slip." Emerald eyes met lilac as Pyrrha stared yang down. "He trusts you, or at least trusted" The past tense on that word hurt Yang more than she had expected but she refrained from interrupting. "Please, keep it a secret."

"Pyrrha…" The champions spirits fell as Yang struggled to decide what would be the right thing to do. "As far as I'm concerned, he earned his place here." Pyrrha's smile came back, and although it was little more than a slight curve of the lips, it felt more honest. "If the teachers ever find out, it won't because of me."

Pyrrha sat up straighter and dipped her head in a slight nod. "Thank you, and not only from myself but Jaune as well. He may be mad but… he still cares." Once again she paused to think before speaking. "I think it's because he cares so much that he reacted the way he did. He didn't tell me what you said, and I won't ask" she cut Yang off before she could say anything. "But he's an emotional person, I'm sure you've noticed."

"Yeah, it's one of his most attractive features. He cares for pretty much everyone, he has a good heart. Somehow, that's enough." Pyrrha's smile fell, taking on the less sincere one form earlier.

She seemed to struggle with some for a moment, though Yang couldn't even begin to guess what it might be.

"You and him are friends… right?" This time, Pyrrha refused to meet her eyes.

"Yeah… why?"

Again Pyrrha seemed to struggle with whether to speak or not. "Is that… all you are?"

It took Yang a moment to realize what she meant, and in truth she kinda wished she didn't figure it out. Her cheeks took on a red hue and she avoided answering for a moment.

In the end, she told the truth. "We're just friends, admittedly a little closer than some friendships but there isn't anything there." The words left her mouth in a little bit of a jumble but Pyrrha seemed to be able to make sense of them.

"Would you like to be more than that? This time Pyrrha looked up at her from the corner of her eyes, unable to fully address the awkward topic but still clearly wanting to know the answer.

"He's a cool guy, and he's actually a pretty good looking one at that, but…" Yang had to think hard on how to continue. "I like our friendship, I wouldn't want to risk it for the world." Pyrrha didn't seem like she fully believed her but was unwilling, or unwanting, to drill her any further.

"Thank you Yang."

"Would you like to know what Jaune and I were talking about?" Yang despised talking behind a friends back in any negative way, it never felt right, and she considered Pyrrha a friend. Not as close as her and Jaune were sure but the Mistrillian champion was always cool to be around.

"I know it was about me in some way, but… in truth I don't care." Pyrrha sighed quietly. "Jaune is frustrated, honestly if it weren't him I would say he was angry, but that word doesn't seem to fit him right."

Yang couldn't help but agree. As the two sat there in silence she had a moment to piece together Pyrrha's questions, and decided to ask one of her own.

"Are you gonna tell him how you feel?"

The question seemed to catch Pyrrha off guard. "I don't know what you mean."

"Pyrrha, there is only one person in the school who doesn't know how you feel about Jaune. Somehow he hasn't figured it out yet." Yang paused to let Pyrrha regain her composure. "You should tell him, while you still can. You never know when he might fall for someone else. You'll hate yourself for waiting."

"I know, believe me I know." Pyrrha sighed and brought a hand to her face. "It… might be best if you gave him some time to calm down."

Yang's eyes feel to the floor. "Yeah, I planned on giving him a few days."

Pyrrha nodded and left without saying another word.

* * *

**Authors Note: Ha HA, I have fooled you all! This was really an Yang x Pyrrha all along! Next chapter they fu- I don't think I have to specify I'm joking. **

**I hope you enjoyed, I encourage you to review and give me your thoughts. It helps me a ton to know how you all feel bout the story. **

**Sincerely  
SE**


	9. Chapter 9

**Authors Notes: Enjoy.**

* * *

Yang sighed in irritation as the Professor continued to talk. School life had seemed to catch up to her and it had finally started to stress her out.

Usually Yang loved combat class, it was one of the few exciting classes the school actually had, but over the past week the class had only served to irritate her more and more for no good reason. Combine that with Oobleck and Port's classes and Yang was on the verge of tearing someone's hair out.

She took a deep breath and attempted to calm herself. It didn't help all that much.

For not the first time, Yang's eyes drifted to Jaune in the row across the isle from them. The two hadn't said a word to each other since the day of the food fight. They had stopped training and their teams had sat as far apart as would not seem rude when the two were around.

Yang thought on the words the two had said to each other and again regretted what she had said. Was she right? Yes, but she knew she had said it wrong. Jaune cared for his partner tremendously, and Yang had insulted her.

Her head hit the table with a soft thud and she released a groan. She knew she had no right to be mad at him, he was the one who had reasons to be upset, but she was mad anyway. That only served to make her mad at herself before making her even more unjustifiably mad at him. In a never ending cycle.

Her partner nudged her slightly with her elbow and she sat back up. Blake looked at her with narrowed eyes and her patented 'what are you up to' look. Yang had the common since to not respond. Even if she wanted to talk about it, this was professor Goodwitch's class. There was nothing more idiotic than talking during her class.

Blake looked away and Yang released another sigh, her eyes moving over to Jaune.

"Jaune Arc and Cardin Winchester." Yang was surprised by the sudden utterance of names, she hadn't been following along and so missed the point when the combat portion of combat class was supposed to kick in.

The two opponents grabbed their gear and then made their way onto the arena. The lights in the rest of the room dimmed and the aura display was brought online.

The professor gave her standard speech about the rules and stepped aside.

The two boys squared each other off and waited for the fight to officially start. When it did however, neither of them rushed off immediately, instead both waiting for the other to make their move first.

It went on longer than it really should have, and had Yang been the one fighting either of them she would have won already.

Finally Cardin got bored and launched the first strike, something that was clearly a probing attack meant to get Jaune to attack back.

Jaune slid the lunge off his shield and stepped back, prompting Cardin to follow. There were a few more exchanges like this, Cardin attacking and Jaune retreating.

The audience seemed incredibly bored, being as how this was probably the slowest paced fight all year, but Goodwitch seemed curious. Her eyes as ever were glued to the fight but something about her posture didn't read 'kill' for once but rather curiosity.

Cardin, large brute that he was, became frustrated. What little patience he had wore off and he finally committed to an attack, landing a solid hit on Jaune's shield before he retreated once more, leaving him basically on the edge of the arena with nowhere left to run. The next lunge however Jaune's plan finally slid into place.

Cardin launched an attack, it was over extended as usual, and committed to the attack with all his force.

Call him what you will, but Cardin was actually fairly good at getting a read on a persons fighting style. He sucked at knowing when to back off or not engage someone but he could make a fairly good guess at what you were gonna do next once he got to know your style, so long as he kept his cool.

He knew how Juane usually fought, bringing his shield up to hold the hit off and avoid the damage, blocking his face and eyesight in the process. The point of a shield after all was to take the hit and it was what most people used it for, excluding Pyrrha who used it like a damn frisbee.

Cardin also knew how to exploit this to his advantage, making the shield more a hindrance for its user.

The larger boys mace came down slow and hard but never found the white shield it was aiming for. This time, instead of doing what he always did, Jaune mixed it up.

Jaune stepped as far to the side as he could, without getting Cardin's attention and making him redirect his attack, and then used his sword to push the mace the rest of the way. The result was a loud thundering hit on the ground, and surprised yell from Cardin. Jaune did not run this time. He planted his feet firmly in the ground and twisted with all his strength, smacking Cardin in the face with his shield, causing the larger man to twist and fly backwards a small ways.

It was at this moment Cardin realized where they were. He was barley still on the arena when Jaune planted a foot in his chest and promptly kicked him out. The room was silent for a moment after the fight, all in disbelief about its outcome.

Jaune Arc had won by ring out.

A slow clapping started by the professor picked up throughout the room. Jaune's team were the most adamant, Team RWBY coming in shortly behind them.

Despite what the two were currently going through, despite how irritated she was at him and herself, she couldn't help but be proud. Jaune Arc had finally bested Cardin Winchester in the sparring ring, and he had done it using her training advice.

Down in the ring Jaune offered a hand to the bully lying on his back, who to everyone's surprise, took the hand without a grumble or insult.

Yang's smile didn't last as Jaune took his place beside his partner. As much as she wanted to go talk to him and congratulate him, she couldn't bring herself to do it.

Class ended shortly after that and the students departed, happy that the day was over and another weekend was finally here. Yang rushed out of the room in a hurry even compared to everyone else. She knew Ruby would want to talk to Jaune but that she wouldn't if Yang stayed there, so she left.

She heard Blake follow her but had made certain not to stop and wait for her until they were alone somewhere. When they were finally alone for the first time in a week, silence was the immediate response.

Blake's eyes were narrowed in suspicion but Yang couldn't guess why. After two more minutes of silence her partner finally spoke. "You need to talk to him."

Yang released a frustrated sigh and turned away. "I don't know what you're talking about." It was a poor lie, yes she knew who she was talking about. How could she not?

"What happened between you two?" Blake moved a step closer to her. "One moment the two of you were sparing and laughing like always and the next you refuse to be in the same room as each other."

"Look, its nothing, ok." Yang wanted to tell her, she really did. She wanted someone she could vent and rant to but that wouldn't be fair to Blake. It wouldn't be fair to put all her problems on her friend.

Sadly, Blake didn't seem willing to let it go. "What did he do?"

"Blake, please just drop it." Yang took a step away but heard her partner follow.

"What did he do that has you so upset?" Blake set a hand down on her shoulder. Her yellow eyes taking on a surprisingly soft tone. "I'm your partner Yang, you can trust me."

Yang tried to avoid oversharing, she really did, but her friends blatant concern was enough to wear down her defenses. Yang told her everything. From the argument the two had had, to his partners own words, to her own hatred at herself for screwing things up so much.

She hated to admit it but it felt nice to let it all out. By the end she was chuckling a little bit at herself. "I know, pretty pathetic huh." Blake made to interrupt but Yang kept talking before she could. "I just… it was really nice to have another close friend. I love team rwby and all but there are just somethings I can't tell you, or Weiss, or Ruby. It was nice to have someone else… I really liked him and then I went and screwed it all up."

Blake seemed… surprised to say the least. Yang's ramble has been almost entirely self driven with next to no input from the faunus girl. She sat there in silence, taking it all in.

"You… liked him?" Blake picked the decidedly wrong details to focus on.

"No no no no no, not like that!" Yang felt heat rushing to her face. "I like him as a friend! That's it, nothing more! Get you mind out of your porno books!" Blake seemed mildly annoyed at Yang insulting her choice in literature but said nothing about it. "He's a cool guy, and he isn't all that bad looking but… he and I… together?"

Blake grinned slightly. "It does sound kinda far fetched, but if he is your friend you should talk to him."

"I know I should apologize bu-"

"I didn't say apologize." Yang was caught off guard by Blake's sudden interruption. "From what you told me, it doesn't sound like you have all that much to feel bad about." Yang tried to interrupt but Blake wouldn't stop long enough to let her. "You said some things that he took the wrong way, that sucks but that's just as much his fault as it is yours." Her eyes softened once more. "That being said, don't lose a friendship over something so small."

Yang was shocked, so much so in in fact that it took a few moments before she was able to come up with a response. "I thought you didn't like him?"

"I didn't, I didn't trust him." Blake paused a moment before realizing Yang wanted her to elaborate. She did so with a sigh. "I didn't trust him because he never felt right to me, I couldn't understand him."

"And you do now?"

Blake seemed to think for a moment before coming to a conclusion on what to say. "He and I had a chat over the break… he said a few things that shed some light on his motives."

Yang waited for her partner to go on, but she didn't. "Anything I should be worried about?"

Blake paused a moment, collection her thoughts and leaving Yang in suspense. "You can trust him to care, that much I'm certain of."

With new resolve Yang set off down the hallway. "If you'll excuse me, I have a man to go get!" It took her three seconds to realize what was wrong with that statement, and a second more for all the blood in her body to move to her cheeks.

* * *

Pyrrha had finally had enough, between all her failures to allure his attention, to Yang's sudden appearance and interest in Jaune. She had hoped he would have made a move by now, but he hadn't.

In all fairness she had failed on her own end. For one of the only times in her life The Invincible Girl had failed due to fear. No more.

The night had started as any other, training. It had been something she had initially wanted to use to get closer to him, to spend more time with him and of course help him at the same time. He had of course never noticed.

It was one of the most frustrating things in her life, one of the few things she had ever truly failed at doing. It was an entirely alien experience for her, she wasn't a fan of the feeling. She had spent the better part of half a year wondering if he felt the same, if he cared for her the same way she cared for him. She had spent the better part of that time afraid he didn't.

All that ended tonight. She was finally going to ask him, as flat out as she could bring herself to do.

The spar had been a short one, him making more mistakes than he had in the last month combined and her punishing him for each of them. By the end each of them were covered in sweat.

They sat on the roof letting the breeze cool them off, a scene they did almost every night. Something Pyrrha had come to love about Beacon.

It was now or never.

"Jaune… there was something I wanted to ask you." Her hands gripped each other in her lap.

"Hm?" He turned his head in her direction and to her shame she couldn't meet his eyes.

"Do you… um…" Pyrrha realized she had no actual plan of what to say. It occurred to her that she should have written it down or practiced lines in the mirror before this. "Um…"

"Is something wrong?" The concern in Jaune's voice forced her to act.

"Do you… like Yang." Pyrrha felt her soul facepalm.

_You coward!_

"Um…" It was Jaune's turn to be awkward. "I suppose so, she's a funny person, of course I like her. She's my friend."

Pyrrha sighed when it became clear he didn't know what she meant. "Jaune…"

He released a deep sigh, speaking in a low voice. "I guess you noticed huh, who am I kidding, everyone noticed." Pyrrha wanted to ask what he was talking about but he kept going before she could interject. "She's a close friend, one of my best if I'm being honest. Second only to you, but…" He sighed once more, unable to go on.

Pyrrha thought back on what Jaune had told her about the two's argument earlier that week, if one could call it that. He still hadn't told her what words exactly had been said on Yang's end but it was apparently important enough to have him so conflicted.

Pyrrha knew what she had to say. "You should talk with her. Whatever was said between you two, try to get past it if you can." She knew her words would make more sense if she had been informed on what the two had argued about but she continued on anyways. "True friends are hard to come by, don't throw it away over a poor choice in words. Especially if-" Pyrrha choked on her words for a moment, unsure if she really wanted to say them, in the end she settled her resolve and went for it. "Especially if you have feelings for her."

That seemed to get Jaune attention. "Feelings? What do you-" Possibly the densest man Pyrrha had ever met finally understood what she was saying, the amount of red on his face was more than her entire outfit. "No no no no no! She doesn't… no no no no!"

Pyrrha sighed in relief internally, before a wave of guilt washed over her for it.

"Yang is a good friend but she would never think of me that way!" Jaune's face somehow got even more red.

Pyrrha decided to risk one more question. "If not her then… is there anyone you feel that way towards?" she feared she was a little too obvious but the words had already been said.

Jaune seemed caught off guard by the question and rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. "Well, I um… I don't know, maybe… I don't know if there's anyone I really like that way."

The words were like a hammer to her chest, the air being forced from her lungs. She struggled to keep he composure and ask one more question. "You're certain? There isn't _anybody_ you're interested in in that way?"

"There might be one girl… maybe, I don't think she-" There was a momentary flash on Jaune's face and for a split moment Pyrrha dared to hope, it was dashed in a second as he panicked and stood up in a hurry. "Oh, hey Yang."

It hurt, truly it did, but in the end she did the right thing. No matter how much she wanted to do something else. "I'll leave you two alone."

Jaune panicked. "You don't have to leave Pyrrha, actually why don't I-"

Pyrrha was already at the door by the time he realized she was no longer standing beside him. She nodded to Yang and offered a soft smile, before walking through the door and down the stairs.

* * *

To call the air between them awkward would be an understatement, neither of them wanted to speak first but in the end Yang swallowed her pride and made the leap.

Blake had said she didn't have anything to apologize for, but Yang couldn't disagree more. She opened her mouth to speak only to be interrupted by Jaune speaking first.

"Yang, I'm sorry… I… I've been acting like a child." He turned away from her and look out over the academy. "I know you didn't mean anything by it and I guess I was just scared."

Yang was caught off guard with the sudden apology, especially when she had show up with the full belief she was in the wrong. "What were you scared of?"

Jaune hesitated for a moment, clearly struggling with whether to answer or not. "I was worried you'd expose me… I told you the truth and I was afraid you would tell the teachers and have me removed… I… I didn't trust you, even after everything… I'm sorry."

"Jaune" Yang struggled to find the right words to say. "You never attended a combat school, you never trained to become a huntsmen" each of her words caused him to forcibly flinch. "And yet you made it through initiation, something people who trained years for couldn't do. You made it through Beacon, you fought Vale's most wanted!" Jaune turned and finally met her eyes. "You've earned your place here a dozen times over, stop being so hard on yourself."

A smile came over both their faces as he extended a hand. "Do you forgive me?"

Yang grabbed his hand and pulled him hin to a hug. "So long as you forgive me."

"There's nothing to forgive Yang." Jaune tried to pull away and say something more but Yang wouldn't let him.

"Then everything is fine. Everything can go back to normal." Even as the words left yang's mouth she had to admit, something felt different.

* * *

**Authors Notes: So by this point in the story I think it has become clear… this isn't a Jaune X Blake fic! I know you all must be disappointed but please, put down the pitchforks. **

**Personally, I never really got why that paring is so popular, it has its moments but I'm more of a White Knight guy myself… probably shouldn't say that on a Dragon slayer fic huh?**

**Anyways, hope you all liked the chapter and please leave a review. I can't express how much it helps me improve if you all tell me what I did wrong… and maybe what I did right. **

**Sincerely SE**


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Notes: I refuse to remove this start AN... and yet I have nothing to say here... I'm just as confused as you.**

* * *

Yang eagerly lead the group through the street of Vale towards their destination. Team's RWBY and JNPR had finally been able to lock down a day to head out on the town. It had taken awhile to set the event up but here they were. Yang planned to make the most of it

Her and Jaune were the ones currently leading the way, chatting between themselves about local gossip and the such. Everyone else followed a few steps behind them, Pyrrha, Weiss and Blake talking about Team RWBY's recent fight with Torchwick.

Ruby was talking with Nora, although it would be more accurate to say Nora was gushing over the fact they got to fight a giant robot.

The Beacon rumor mill had exaggerated the whole affair from the start, Yang couldn't blame people for being interested. It was pretty awesome.

They arrived at their destination a few moments later.

"Why exactly are we here?" Weiss' voice was the first to speak as the group looked at the entrance to The Club.

"Well Weiss, that's one of life's great questions. Why are we here? What's the point in-"

"That's not what I meant, you dolt!" Weiss swatted at her head but Yang promptly threw Jaune into the path of her fist.

"Ah-ow!" Jaune fell to the ground immediately after impact, Weiss' punch both unexpected and vicious.

"I meant, why are we at a club of all places?!" Weiss didn't so much as bat an eye.

"Because we put it to a vote and your idea of 'Art exhibit' got shot down?" Jaune offered from his position on the floor. Before Weiss kicked him, forcing him to stay quiet.

"That doesn't explain why we picked here! A building full of thugs, idiots, and degenerates. That place is probably riddled with diseases and filth!"

"You and I just finished a week of work and planning for the dance. We even managed to get it done two days early. " Yang sighed. "You'll have more fun if you don't complain every step of the way, like you already have. With missions right after we won't have another opportunity like this for awhile."

Weiss stepped back and stayed quiet.

Jaune stood from the ground slowly, attempting to look like he hadn't just been floored by a girl nearly half his height, and gestured to the door. "Unto the breach?"

"It would seem so." His Partner looked about as apprehensive as Weiss but didn't wish to kill the mood.

Jaune opened the door for them. "After you."

The door swung shut and The Club stopped.

"Oh no, no no no! Not again!" Junior was pointing at them from the bar, or more specifically Yang. "I only just convinced my guards to stay on, they'll bolt at the first sight of you!"

Seven sets of eyes looked to Yang as she rubbed the back of her neck and laughed nervously. Thankfully Weiss came to her rescue.

"Don't worry, we won't let her destroy your establishment again."

"Hey." Weiss was supposed to be on her side.

Jaune stepped forward to defend her. "We'll keep her in line." and promptly sided with Weiss.

"Hey!"

Junior didn't look like he believed them but decided to not risk destroying his club… again. "Fine."

Yang slid up to the bar. "Any chance I could talk you into giving us access to one of the VIP areas? Come on, you know you want to."

Junior glared down at her. "And why would I do that?"

"If we're out of the way there's less chance Yang destroys your club."

"Hey!" Yang glared at the group, not certain who had been the one to speak.

"Deal." Junior grabbed something from under the counter. He was about to hand her the pass card but changed his mind at the last second, giving it to Jaune instead. "I expect to get that back."

Yang fought back her anger and followed Jaune.

The VIP room they had been given access to was a fair bit nicer than the main part of the club. While not abandoned it was also a bit more roomy and not as crowded as the lower level typically was.

"Oh Reny, let's dance!" Nora grabbed her partner by the arm and practically threw him in the direction of the dance floor.

"Why don't you guys go find us a table. Yang and I will get the drinks." Jaune gestured for Yang to follow as they split up.

The bar of the VIP section was far smaller than the one down stairs but it appeared to be just as well stocked. They ordered a few fruity drinks, each only having a trace amount of alcohol in them, except for Ruby's of course, more than making up for it in good taste. The bartender stepped back to prepare their drinks, leaving Jaune and Yang there alone.

Jaune laughed at something on the dance floor, drawing Yang's attention.

"I feel like I should do something to help Ren, he is my teammate and all, but… better him than me, right?"

The sight they looked on was Nora practically flinging her 'dance' partner around the floor.

Yang giggled lightly. "Well, at least one of them is having fun. I say we honor his sacrifice." The two of them pretended not to have noticed the panicked 'come help me' look in the boy's eyes.

"He will be remembered fondly" The two of them sat their for a moment waiting for the drinks in silence before Jaune spoke again. "I hope you weren't upset at what we said to the barkeep guy downstairs."

Yang scoffed and turned away. "Oh come on, you know I'm thicker skinned than that."

Jaune turned to look her directly in the eye's, in truth it made Yang a little uncomfortable. "I know, its just… do you always have to play the tough one?"

Yang shrugged but didn't say much in return.

Jaune sighed. "I'm trying to be nice."

"You're always nice, try relaxing a little."

"I'm not always nice." Jaune seemed to struggle with something before speaking. "I have been a bit of a jerk recently." Yang tried to interrupt but Jaune wouldn't let her. "I ignored you and went out of my way to avoid you. I refused to listen to what you had to say and I-" He was stopped by Yang laughing slightly. "What's so funny?"

"You're still caught up on that?" Yang sighed. "How many times have you brought this up? Let it go. We were both at fault, I'm tired of hearing about it. Let's just enjoy a night out with friends."

Jaune looked like he wanted to argue but decided to let it slide for now, she highly doubted he would drop the issue however. "You certainly need it, you've been pretty stressed this last week."

"I don't know what you're talking about, everything has been going my way." Yang smiled and nodded towards her team. "Blake has finally started to act normal, well normal for her anyways. I consider that a win."

"I feel like I should point out that in order to get her to act normal you had to fight a giant mech."

"All the more reason to be happy about it!" Yang's grin grew larger. "How many of you can say you fought a giant robot and won?"

Jaune ceded the point. "I suppose that's fair. Though if you ever decide to go hunting terrorist and renown criminals in the middle of the night again, let me know. I need to regain my honor after that last fight." Jaune brought a hand up to his chest, doing a poor imitation of heroic stance.

Yang chuckled and nodded. "I'll keep that in mind. In the meantime let's enjoy ourselves" The bartender returned with their drinks and the two set out on the task of getting all the drinks back towards the table.

The night was rather tame by Yang's standards. It was nice in its own way though. With a stronger focus on chatting among friends instead of the typical club behavior. At least for the first half, once people had finally gotten comfortable and more relaxed the night began to actually kick off.

For the most part it was Nora and Yang who were the only ones _willingly_ going out to the dance floor. They did their job, though, and dragged everyone else out to join them. People had a good time, even if they acted like they hated it.

By the time they left, Nora was passed out over Ren's shoulders, Jaune was laying on Pyrrha and Yang for support. As it turned out he was a lightweight, the small amount of alcohol from the dozen or so beverages he had ordered were enough to have him a little out of it.

The trip back to Beacon was rather entertaining actually. Nora waking up occasionally with proclamations of pancakes and dreams before falling back asleep. Sadly, Jaune didn't have anything to add.

* * *

The night had been fun, the morning after, however, certainly wasn't. Then again maybe that was just due to his own mistakes.

Jaune held his head as another spike of pain was brought to his attention. A hangover… how was it that aura didn't do something for those? They totally should have, and yet here he was, clutching his head trying to block out all light.

"Shouldn't have had more than you could handle." The voice that had talked him into drinking so much the night before, hell the voice that had talked him into going in the first place, taunted him.

Jaune glared at Yang as she handed him a glass of water. The two had been the late risers that day, the bulk of their teams were already up and moving by the time he was able to drag himself out of bed. Food had seemed like a good idea, he was regretting that decision.

"I have some sunglasses if you want them." Yang's smug grin at his pain forcing him to regret ever befriending her.

"It's not that bad, I'm just not used to it." Jaune drank the water slowly. In truth the headache was just a slight pain.

"That's good… because we're gonna do some training." Yang stood from where she was sitting.

Jaune had to think fast. "Actually, um-uh… it's horrible, I can barely think." Yang didn't seem to believe his sudden condition. He resorted to drastic measures. "I think I'm dying, no I _know_ I'm dying. You should go find the nurse, I'll wait here."

* * *

Yang watched as Jaune took his place opposite her in the sparring ring. His movements were slightly sluggish and he struggled to keep his sword steady.

That didn't matter, he would be fine in a few moments. Call her crazy but Yang loved a good fight when you had a hangover, the adrenaline clearing your head up in an instant better than anything else. It was just a shame Jaune didn't see she was helping him.

"I will literally pay you to not do this." Jaune begged her and she knew she would have to raise the stakes to make him actually try.

"Tell you what, let's make this more interesting. If you win, I'll let you apologize for giving me the cold shoulder for a week."

"And if you win?" Yang smiled at how far he had come, he had finally stopped assuming everyone was out of his league or beyond him to beat. It made her proud that he was willing to entertain the thought that he could win... he wasn't going to of course but wouldn't be because he was unwilling to try.

"Then we drop the issue, once and for all."

Jaune lowered himself into a combat stance, albeit a sloppy one. Regardless of how willing his mind was his body was still out of it. She knew how to fix that.

The first strike, as it had always had, came from Yang. Jaune's shield just barely made it up in time to stop her fist, his slow movement and distracted mind making it difficult to defend himself.

The punch she landed on his cheek seemed to do the trick. Whether it was muscle memory or just self preservation he started to fight back.

Yang pressed her advance, landing two more hits on his shield before ducking under a swing from his sword. She saw his eye's widen slightly just before she hit him in the chest, launching him back.

She gave him a moment to get back on his feet and regain his composure. He put his shield out in front of him, keeping the hilt of his sword up near his shoulder with the point of the blade aimed at her.

When she thought he had had enough time to prepare, she moved. This time her punch was moved to the side by his shield, his sword came down and blocked her other hit.

At this range Jaune wasn't able to properly use his sword as a sword, meaning he had to get crafty.

He shoved his shield into her abdomen pushing her back slightly before swinging up with his blade, forcing her to back off or take the hit. The choice was obvious.

She moved her forearms into position to block the sword as it landed. The blade didn't make it to her skin but it did take a large tick off her aura, the sheer strength and force behind it throwing her back slightly. The force was enough to activate her semblance.

Jaune cursed under his breath as Yang's hair went up in flames. She couldn't help but grin as she advanced. He managed to get his shield up and stop the first three hits, each one still working to push him back.

Yang hit his shield and he stumbled backwards. The awkward angle of the strike combined with his loss of balance from the last forcing him to drop his shield. He reached for it in a panic but was kicked back by her before he could grasp it.

The result was Jaune standing on the edge of the arena with nothing more than his sword and a terrified look in his eyes.

Yang took a step forward, launching one final punch. She was already committed when she remembered a familiar scene in combat class against a certain bully. There was nothing she could do by the time she noticed the smile come to his face or the slight shimmer in his eyes.

He had her exactly where he wanted her.

Jaune stepped to the side just enough so that her fist made contact with his shoulder He rolled it back and brought his sword around from the side, pushing her further over the arena.

It was all Yang could do to reach out and grasp something, said something turned out to be her opponent's arm. An event that Jaune was clearly not prepared for.

As Yang went flying over the edge, so to did Jaune. She pulled him forward slightly, twisting at the same time, resulting in him landing first with Yang landing on him a few millisecond's after.

The two of them sat their panting for a moment as the adrenaline finally wore off. It had been a short but intense fight, the only downside was that Jaune had won. She wasn't so arrogant or full of herself to be mad that her friend had won, she was thrilled that he had made the progress and truly improved, but of all the times he had to win this was the worst.

She wanted to end everything and forget it but it seemed fate was not so kind.

She opened her eyes, finally looking at the man she was currently using as a body pillow. She hadn't been aware of how close they were to each other, Jaune's face only a few inches away.

_Kiss him._

Yang froze as she became hyper aware of just how close they were, from the heat radiating off his body to the solidness of his muscles. She couldn't deny how right it felt. She became painfully aware of how close his lips were to her own.

_Kiss him._

She bit her lip hard enough to flare her aura slightly. She closed her eyes and bent her head down slightly, locking her lips with his. She was utterly surprised by how soft and perfect his lips felt against her own.

She was even more surprised when he leaned into the kiss.

Yang wasn't sure how long they sat there like that, time warping as all she could focus on was the smell and taste of sweat mixed with something so very… Jaune. Clarity hit like a brick.

The two of them broke off, gasping for air. Yang leaped up as fast as she could. Wide eyed and placing a hand over her mouth. She could still taste him there, could still feel the warmth.

She looked down at Jaune and felt… something, something that terrified her. The building dread of what she had just done finally coming to the forefront of her mind. She took a step back as he attempted to stand from the floor.

Yang did the only thing she could think of, she ran.

* * *

**Author's Notes: We're in the endgame now... get it? It's a reference.. don't worry if you don't laugh, my humor is beyond many. But seriously, we are approaching the end and I think I'll have just enough time to finish this story.  
****I know I'm excited, how about you? **

**Please review and let me know what you think, helps me out a ton.**  
**Sincerely SE**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Notes: I'm cutting this really close.**

* * *

Yang hit the training dummy again, hoping that the adrenaline would help take her mind off of what she had done. It didn't.

She had made a mistake. She got caught up in the moment and like an idiot let it get the better of her. She let her emotions do what they pleased and now here she was, suffering because of it.

The dummy bounced back up from the floor before being sent back down with her follow up hit, and so the cycle continued.

She wasn't certain how long she was there but the sun had fallen below the horizon at least an hour ago.

Yang thought back on her actions and felt another spike of anger directed at herself. She ran from Jaune in the moment, for what? What was there to be ashamed of? Neither of them were seeing anyone, they were both single, and yet it felt like she was doing something awful.

She had left him in just as much confusion as she had felt at the time. To top that off she had returned to the training room a couple hours later because she knew he would never think to look for her there.

She hated herself even more for the attempts at hiding, and yet she couldn't do the right thing.

"ARGH!" She hit the dummy again, this time launching it several feet back, before collapsing to her knees. "Why can't I just act like an adult."

The door to the training room swung open and Yang froze. She prayed that it wasn't who she feared it was, and it seemed someone had answered her prayers.

The familiar red and bronze color scheme leaving little room for questions.

Yang rose from her spot on the floor, dusting her hands off before moving to retrieve the dummy she had been taking her emotions out on.

The girl in the doorway didn't seem sure what to do, walking over the area Yang was in with hesitation. The look on Pyrrha's face could easily be described as complicated.

Yang moved the dummy back to its original location and resumed what she had been doing.

She wasn't sure how long they were there for, just sitting in relative silence. The only sound in the room being Yang's punches and heavy breaths.

Pyrrha did eventually speak however. "Will _you _at least tell me what happened?"

Something about her infliction on the word made Yang pause for a moment, only a moment though, before resuming her hitting. "Same thing as last time."

Yang couldn't see her face but she could tell the Pyrrha was confused by her voice. "What do you mean?"

"I messed it up… again." Yang emphasised her words with a punch and a pause.

"I don't understand, what happened?" Pyrrha's voice didn't sound demanding, nor did it sound forceful, and yet it succeeded in grinding on Yang's already frayed nerves.

"Ugh! I messed up, ok?!" Yang kicked the dummy, once again sending it flying, before turning on the only other person in the room. "If your partner didn't tell you what happened what made you think I would?!"

Pyrrha didn't seem frightened, or even surprised, she seemed worried. The complicated look from earlier giving way to concern. "Jaune has been looking for you all day, he's been worried sick." She paused for a moment, reluctant to go on, but after a moment she did. "He said he doesn't know what he did wrong, it all just happened so quickly… he neglected to mention what _it_ was however."

Yang's breaths came out heavy, the slight rush of adrenaline she had managed to work up wearing off, as she felt drained. "I-I… Pyrrha, I…" Try as she might she couldn't say what she wanted. "I'm sorry, for snapping at you."

A small smile came to the girls face, though it never reached her eyes. "You have nothing to apologize for… and if it's what I think it is, I certainly won't blame you." Yang wanted to interrupt but was unable to, as Pyrrha went on. "Do you know what my greatest regret is, Yang?"

The brawler tried to speak but found herself unable, thankfully the question was mostly rhetorical.

"I regret waiting to be honest with my feelings."

Yang's eyes went wide. "I-I don't-"

"I regret it every time I see him with that grinn of his… and I regret it every time I see him look at you with that same smile… I've been paying close attention to Jaune and you, for quite some time actually." Pyrrha sighed. "At first it was because I was concerned you were trying to use or take advantage of him, and for that I apologize, but as you two grew closer… I became jealous."

Yang gulped quietly, finally managing to untie her tongue. "What would you have to be jealous of? You're _the_ Pyrrha Nikos."

"Jaune and you grew closer faster than I could ever have imagined. It felt like you were trying to steal him away from me, but…" Pyrrha signed once more. "He was never mine to steal away. I made my peace with that, but I can't stand by and watch as you struggle with the same thing I have."

Yang wanted to deny her accusations, claim that there were no feelings there or that she was just reading into it too much, but in the end she was just too tired to try. Yang sighed and sat on a nearby bench. "I messed up big time."

Pyrrha wanted to ask for more details, it was clear as day by the look on her face, but she didn't and for that she had Yang's respect and thanks. "How long have you had feelings for him? If you don't mind me asking."

Yang thought for a moment, she didn't know where to begin, and for a moment she considered not answering. "I don't know, it all just… happened so fast."

Pyrrha exhaled sharply. "That seems to be the normal way. It took me some time to notice myself."

Yang sighed. "I… I don't know what to do Pyrrha… I-I just-"

"I know, Yang. I know." Pyrrha rested one hand on her shoulder. "But we can't turn back the clock, you feel what you feel… for better or worse." The smile she offered was far more restricted, and came with an underlying sadness to it. "Have you tried talking to him about… whatever it is you feel?"

Yang shook her head at the idea. "No, no that… that would be a bad idea."

Pyrrha sank slightly at hearing her words. "That's what I thought for the longest time… and then it was too late. You need to relax, clear your head… or as much as you can at least." She stood and took a few steps back into the arena. "How about a spar?"

It was a weak attempt at distracting her, the allure of battle and the adrenaline that came with it was enticing however. In the end Yang rose and squared off in front of the champion, at least Pyrrha would punch back.

* * *

Blake shrank away from the doorway as the sounds of combat rang out from inside. She had come looking for Yang but arrived shortly after Pyrrha had. In the end she thought it best to let the two talk alone and undisturbed.

In the end she felt she made the right decision, Pyrrha was able to offer words Blake never would have thought of. This wasn't something she was excessively familiar with… whatever this was.

Blake sighed and lef the two fighters alone, she would talk with Yang later but for the moment she would let Pyrrha try her hand at it first.

A few hours passed after that. She saw Pyrrha reunite with her team but Yang seemed to be off somewhere else still. So that meant it was her turn.

In the end it wasn't difficult to find her. When she was upset she loved to spar and sit on the roof of the dorms to clear her head. The doom roof was too close to the reason she was upset so she went someplace else.

The best spot Blake could think of was the cliff side overlooking the ocean, and that was precisely where she was.

Yang heard her approach but only looked to make sure it wasn't Jaune before turning back to the view.

Blake sat next to her partner in silence, hoping that she would say something to prompt a conversation. She had no such luck.

The two sat in silence for some time that way as Blake racked her brain for the right words to say, none of which came to mind, thankfully Yang finally spoke.

"The bet's off." Yang didn't look over to her. It took Blake a moment to remember what she was referring too.

With a roll of her eyes Blake ran with the topic. "And why is that?" She knew perfectly well why, it hadn't been difficult to figure out even before she heard Yang and Pyrrha talking, but Yang didn't know that.

Yang looked over to her finally. "It's off, ok?"

Blake hatched a plan. "I don't think so, we had a bet… and I've held up my end of the bargain. Weiss and I will be going to the dance together, it's only right that you hold up your end of it."

Yang shook her head and was about to interrupt but Blake continued. "Besides, you're practically done as is."

Yang glared at her partner. "He beat Cardin, I won. It's over."

"I don't know about that. Call Cardin what you will but he isn't stupid enough to fall for that ring out plan twice. I don't think Jaune is quite ready to beat him in an actual fight yet, and if he can't…"

Yang sighed. "Than I haven't won yet." She brought her knees up onto the bench they sat on, resting her head against them. "I can't do this Blake." The words sounded weak, none of the usual energy or emotion behind them.

It was the first sign Blake got about how Yang truly felt and it worried her.

It pained her that she didn't know how to help her friend. "Can't do what?"

Yang groaned. "Please stop playing dumb, Pyrrha saw you watching us from the hall. I know you heard everything."

Blake blushed at being caught. "I um-"

"That also means you know why I can't go ahead with this."

Blake took a moment to think. "I don't think I do. Yang… this isn't how I'd expect you to react to something like this."

Yang gave a soft and sad chuckle. "Always been one to do things the hard way… why not keep it up, right?"

"Yang, why can't you go talk to Jaune?" The question was rather blunt and for a moment Blake feared Yang wouldn't answer.

"Because I messed up Blake." The chuckle returned though this time it had something else to it that Blake couldn't identify.

"You've said that a few times, but what does that mean?" Blake shook her head slightly to buy herself a second to think about what to ask next. "Two people developing feelings for one another after time spent together isn't uncommon, especially when you throw life and death into the mix."

Blake didn't have very much to compare to this. Her relationship was nothing like this, perhaps because it was more… something she couldn't quantify. "Why can't you and Jaune… you know what I mean, would it really be so bad?" The two had grown close, and it was clear they enjoyed each other's company.

Blake was missing something important, something that Yang was keeping back.

"Because I don't want to end up like my dad, or worse my mom." Yang hid her face in her knees, hiding her expression from view.

Blake thought back on the conversations Yang and her had on the subject. "I don't see how that connects to this." The story about Yang and Ruby's father was a sad one, but that was different from this.

Yang didn't pick her head up from her knees. "He fell in love with half his team, he fell in love with my…" Yang couldn't say it. "He lost my mom, or drove her away, or she never loved him in the first place. That broke their team and almost broke my dad."

"Yang, that's not go-"

"And I refuse to allow that to happen because of me!" Yang finally lifted her head up from her knees, giving Blake a good look at the expression on her partners face. "I don't want to lose Jaune! I don't want to drive him away because of how I feel!" It was the first time Blake had ever seen tears in Yang's eyes. "I don't want to be the reason Ruby stops hanging out with her friend! I don't want to lose anyone else!"

Blake looked away and was prepared to let Yang out of the bet. She considered allowing Yang to run away from the problem in the hopes that it would fix itself while she was gone.

In the end she couldn't let her partner do that.

"You're not gonna run away from this Yang, I won't let you." Blake set a hand on her friend's shoulder. "That won't fix this, running never does. Please, don't just back out because your afraid."

Yang's lip quivered and for a moment Blake thought she might actually cry. She didn't however, the expression was pushed aside as she regained her resolve. "You're right, Blake. You're right."

For a moment Blake allowed herself to relax. She had done it, she had been able to knock some sense into her partner without a fight. Something she was almost certain would be necessary.

Yang rose from her spot on the bench. "There's only one thing I can do."

* * *

**Authors Notes: I SHOULD have everything done on time... *sweats profusely*  
**

**I know people are probably going to question some of my choices, and if so please let me know what you think, but always keep in mind that this is fanfiction. I go to great lengths to try and make things flow with a logical progression but that can only go so far.**

**Hope you enjoy, please review and let me know your thoughts.  
****Sincerely SE**


	12. Chapter 12

**Authors Notes: You're gonna want to read the AN at the bottom… seriously, I cant stress this enough.**

* * *

Jaune was many things, kind, intelligent, loyal, unfortunately one of those things was also predictable. It took no time at all for Pyrrha to find him.

She knew him, it was one of the few things she allowed herself to take pride in, that she knew her partner so well. Whenever he was feeling down or distraught, he would come to the roof where she had first started training him.

It brought a sad smile to her face to see him there now.

Jaune sat at the edge of the roof, looking out over Vale. There were still a few hours before dusk meaning the view was nothing compared to what it could be.

Pyrrha made sure to keep her distance until he noticed her presence. When he finally looked over his shoulder at her, she approached.

They sat in silence for a few moments as she waited for him to say something, in the end he said nothing and it was up to her to start the conversation.

"Are you ready for the dance tonight?" She felt it was a good topic, one that would lead to what she really wanted to ask.

Jaune didn't look at her, nor did he seem to even hear her question for a moment. His reply was quiet, barely above a whisper. "I'm not going."

Pyrrha sighed softly but refused to leave it at that. "And why not?"

Jaune lowered his head for a moment before sighing. "It would be a bad idea."

Pyrrha waited for more but nothing came. "And why is that? This is a rare occasion, you should try to enjoy it while you can."

"I don't want to ruin the night."

Pyrrha had a reply ready in an instant declaring no such thing would occur, but she held back when she heard the tone in his voice. "Who would you ruin it for?"

Jaune looked at her for a moment before turning back to the view. "They put a lot of work into this… I'm sure it will be perfect." His voice sounded sorrowful, it didn't fit him at all and Pyrrha felt her heart shake at it.

Pyrrha paused a moment before speaking. "Then shouldn't you go? If you're so sure it will be perfect, won't you regret not going?" It was sound logic, something he couldn't deny.

"Yang deserves to enjoy the evening more than I do." In the end, he didn't try to deny it. "I want to go, truly I do but…" He paused a moment. "It wouldn't be fair of me to steal that joy from Yang."

"You would put her happiness before your own?" Pyrrha couldn't hold back a sad smile when Jaune nodded his head. He was still the selfless person he had always been, the one she had fallen in love with.

She put those thoughts away, her chance for that happiness may have passed but it wasn't for Jaune. "What happened?" She knew of course, Yang had told her the whole affair, but she needed to see Jaune's side of it.

Jaune seemed hesitant, not that Pyrrha could blame him, but eventually decided to talk.

"We were training, like we always do, except things were going well for once. It seemed like I might actually beat her, and technically I did. Ring out, just like Cardin." Pyrrha smiled at the thought and Yangs own recollection of the moment she realized the trap before her. "She grabbed me as she fell and threw me down to cushion her fall."

Jaune let loose a sigh, one filled with regret. "We sat there in silence, it felt nice… she felt nice. Before I knew it we were kissing." A slight blush came to his cheeks but he didn't stop speaking. "I don't know who started it… one moment we were sitting there the next… well…"

Pyrrha's tongue got caught in her throat. He didn't know Yang wanted that kiss just as much as he had.

"After a few moments she threw herself up on her feet." Jaune sighed once more. "The look on her face… I couldn't get to my feet fast enough. I drove her off."

Even in heart break, Jaune defended the other person first. Yang had run, no one else would have said it the way Jaune had, directing all the blame away from her onto himself.

Pyrrha had a choice to make. Did she betray Yang's confidence in her and tell Jaune the truth? Jaune was many things, and she loved him dearly for all of them, but he was possibly the most dense man on all of Remnant when it came to matters of the heart.

"Are you sure she doesn't feel the same way?" In the end, Pyrrha couldn't bring herself to betray Yang's trust. At least, not out right.

Jaune seemed to hesitate for a moment before responding. "I'm sure."

Pyrrha's heart sank. "Why wouldn't she like you?" Jaune seemed startled by the force behind her words, and for a moment she was too. "You always put yourself down, acting like you don't deserve this. Jaune, you are better than you know! People love you for who you are but you break our hearts when you act like you're not worth that."

Jaune seemed startled but regained his composure a moment later. "I appreciate what you're saying, I do, but... Yang never seemed to think of me that way."

Pyrrha bit back her reply that he never noticed her, that would only make things worse. She wasn't here for herself. "You said you were sparring, right?" She waited for him to nod before continuing. "Adrenaline is natures best drug. It can make people do things they normally wouldn't, like act on certain feelings that they didn't notice were there in the first place."

Pyrrha spoke from experience. There were numerous occasions where she almost did the same thing Yang had done, only stopping because she was scared.

Jaune seemed conflicted and went to speak but was interrupted by Pyrrha before he could. "You don't know how she feels, don't pretend to. All you have to know is how you feel." She took a deep breath and asked the question that mattered most. "Do you have feelings for Yang?"

Jaune sat in silence for a moment before turning to her with a smile on his face. "I know what I have to do." He stood up and turned towards the door. "But I think I'll need your help."

Pyrrha couldn't agree fast enough.

* * *

Jaune walked up to the door, placing his fist only an inch away from it, before backing away once more. A series of events that he had been repeating for nearly half an hour. He had been trying to work up the courage to knock on the team Rwby dorm for several hours.

In the end he kicked himself mentally for how weak he was and started to step away, just as the door opened to a rather irate Schnee.

She glared at him for a few moments before speaking. "Well?" when it became clear he had no plan on replying she growled and spoke again. "Are you going to come in or not?"

Jaune knew how he must have looked, an idiot would probably be the closest term describing it. "I was just um… uh, looking for Ruby." He kicked himself again for slipping into a lie. "She borrowed one of my comics and I wanted to get it back before-"

Weiss sighed. "Save it, Yang isn't here at the moment."

Jaune brought his hand to the back of his neck and laughed nervously. "I don't kn-"

"Blake told me about… about what happened." She sent a glare in his direction before turning and retreating into her room, gesturing for him to follow.

In the end he did so reluctantly of his own free will… and not because he was scared of what she might do if he didn't.

Weiss shut the door softly. "Would you care to explain why you were skulking at our door for so long?"

Jaune forced himself to be calm, or at the very least attempted to approximate calm. "I need your help."

Weiss seemed surprised for a moment before slipping back into her normal glaring self. "And why would I help you?"

Jaune took another heavy breath to steady himself. "Because it might help Yang in the process… and that's something you would like to do."

The Heiress sent him a skeptical look. "Go on."

It was progress, he would take progress. "Is Yang going to be at the dance tonight?"

Weiss again seemed skeptical of whether to answer the question but finally did. "She will be."

"Good. Where is she now?" Jaune slowly began pacing around the room.

Weiss responded rather quickly this time, though the glare certainly didn't disappear. "She and Blake went into Vale to get ready for tonight."

"We still have time then, good."

"What are you planning, Arc?" Weiss' suspicion returned.

A grin came to his face. "I'm gonna fight her."

The room became impossibly silent.

"You're going to what?!" Weiss didn't seem to approve, though that was probably because she didn't have all the details.

"Yang and I first became friends because she started sparring with me, hopefully, that will help us work out some of our problems." It was a good idea, he knew because he had run it through Pyrrha first. "That random act of kindness was the only reason she and I are friends now."

"That isn't a... _terrible_ idea, I suppose." It seemed like it physically pained her to say that.

"So you'll help me?"

Weiss glared at him for a full minute before answering. "Fine, but this isn't for you."

Jaune's grin grew even more. "Of course this isn't for me."

"What exactly do you need me to do?" Weiss moved away from the door to sit down. Jaune continued standing and walking about the room.

"When she gets to the dance I need one of you to keep her there, at least for an hour. Enough time for her to maybe relax a little bit. After that, you, Ruby, and Blake make up an excuse to bring her to one of the training rooms and-"

"How are we supposed to do that exactly?" Of course she asked a question he didn't have an answer to.

In the end, he made it up on the spot. "Say that you all have something special planned. Technically not a lie."

Weiss nodded her head. "That certainly is something Ruby would do… I suppose that would work."

"I'll take care of it from there. Can you get Blake and Ruby up to speed on the plan?"

Weiss nodded. "They'll be more than willing to help, I'm sure."

Jaune turned and moved towards the door. "Thanks Weiss." She made to interrupt but Jaune continued. "For being there for Yang, I know how much it means to her." He pretended to not notice the Heiress' blush and left the room.

The next step was to get dressed. Hopefully Pyrrha was able to find him a suit on such short notice.

* * *

Blake attempted to match her friends speed, an issue she had never had before. Yang was in a hurry.

Yang was trying to get this over with as fast as for her the location hadn't been very busy today, a small miracle considering the dance was in just a few hours.

"Yang, come on, this is ridiculous." For not the first time Blake attempted to reason with her. "You need to talk to Jaune."

Yang shook her head as she walked. "No, you were right. I can't just run away from our bet… that means there's only one choice." She seemed to shutter at the thought, and Blake understood why.

She stepped in front of her partner and put her hand out, bringing Yang to a halt for a moment. "You're being unreasonable." Yang tried to push past her but Blake refused to let her. "You just need to talk to Jaune, its j-"

"No!" Yang's eyes flashed red as she powered through Blake's hold, once again heading to her location. "I'm not gonna do what my father did. Dating hunters… it doesn't work." She slowed down for a moment, allowing Blake to catch up to her. "I don't want to do this Blake… I really don't but… I've already lost two mom's, if Jaune and I were to start anything it… it would just end tragically."

Blake tried to think of something to say, something to bring some sense to her friend or raise her spirits. In the end Blake couldn't. Ruby. Weiss, or maybe even Jaune would have had words to say that would reassure Yang that everything would be ok, but Blake didn't believe that.

She truly understood where Yang was coming from, the fear and the worry of losing someone you love on a dangerous mission was horrible. Could Blake really blame Yang for not wanting to put herself through that? Who was she to preach the idea of not running from your problems.

In the end, Blake let Yang make the choice. She was the one that had to live with it, or without it.

They stopped outside their destination as Yang seemed to hesitate before hardening her resolve and opening the door.

The lady behind the desk offered them a smile, not noticing just how unwilling they were. "Welcome to Cleo's Salon, do you have an appointment or is this a walk in?"

* * *

**Authors Notes: WAIT, HEAR ME OUT! LOWER THE PITCH FORKS! I know this is stretching canon… a lot. But think about it, Yang is confused and worried about losing her friend, she's terrified of ending up like her father, alone and broken, or her mother. She doesn't want to confront Jaune, and this is the only way she sees out of it, that is the key here "The only way **_she_** sees out of it." **

**And I know its out of cannon, but that's the point of fanfiction. To see things we would never see in the show. There is one more chapter after this one, I highly implore you to read it and wait to see how this ends.**

**Let me hear all you have to say in the reviews. I hope you enjoyed it. **

**Sincerely SE**


	13. Chapter 13

**Authors Notes: Welp... here we go.**

* * *

Jaune closed the door as quietly as possible, while he had gotten Professor Goodwitch's permission to use the room he wanted to avoid anyone else being aware of his plan.

As he turned away from the door and started down the hallway towards the actual dance, his nervousness returned.

Jaune had a plan and with every step he took that plan seemed like a worse and worse idea. Not only did he plan on fighting Yang, he planned to ask her out after it.

His palms felt sweaty and he could barely stand. More than once he wanted to just forget the whole idea, to go to his room and play video games or something, but in the end he hardened his resolve, or at least as much as he could, and pressed on wards.

The dance had started about an hour before, meaning everyone should have been in position. All that was left was for him to show up and give Weiss the signal.

He approached the doors with the largest genuine smile he had had in as long as he could remember.

"You certainly took your time, didn't you?" Weiss and Ruby met him out front, slightly to the side as to avoid any attention.

"I'm sure it was important Weiss." Ruby, ever the good friend, protected him. He didn't have the courage to tell her the reason he was late was because his own doubt. "Everything ready?"

"It should be, yeah." Jaune looked to the door. "She is here, right?"

"Of course, I told you she'd be here didn't I?" Weiss turned and lead them to the door. She paused when she reached the handle. "Though I probably should warn you…"

"Warn me about what?" Jaune looked to Ruby, who had apparently found something interesting in the bushes, giving her an excuse to look away.

"Well… she… changed her look a little bit." Weiss shook her head. "Never mind, you'll see soon enough." She opened the door and walked through.

Jaune was confused but followed her in. It only took a moment for him to see what she meant.

"Oh… that's not bad actually." his brain couldn't fully process what he was seeing. Standing off to the side was Blake, doing her part and making sure Yang didn't try to leave early. Beside her stood a rather awkward looking Yang… with hair only a few inches longer than Ruby's.

"That's all you have to say?" Weiss raised an eyebrow. "Ruby almost died of shock when she saw."

"Hey! I did not, I was just… surprised was all." Ruby laughed awkwardly.

"I'm shocked, it's just…" Jaune couldn't form the words he was looking for, in fact, he couldn't focus on anything other than the girl on the far side of the room.

Yang was always beautiful, but now? There was something… different about it, like he was seeing her for the first time, as cliche as that sounds.. It was her but also something more.

It took a solid minute for him to regain his ability to speak. "Why did she- she loves her hair." He directed his question at Weiss since Ruby had ran over to her sister to prepare for her part of the plan.

"It was part of a bet between her and Blake." Weiss scoffed in disbelief. "I never thought she'd actually do it though, none of us did."

Jaune understood why, the thing's Yang loved more than her hair could be counted on one hand. "The reward if she won must have been pretty good for her to risk losing."

"Blake and I going to the dance together." Weiss turned to him for a moment. "I don't think she even considered that she might lose." She seemed to think for a moment. "In her defense, she really didn't lose so much as… forfeit."

That peaked Jaune's interest even more. Yang was many things, a quitter wasn't one of them. "What was the bet?"

"Whether she could make you a better fighter or not." Weiss turned back to look at the rest of her team with a sigh. "That's the whole reason we ended up here in the first place."

_Wait.. It was a bet? I was… just a bet?_

Weiss kept talking, not noticing Jaune's confusion. "Blake said Yang wanted out of the bet and this was the only way out… Blake pressured her to keep the bet and well… she did."

"But… That doesn't… why would Blake force her?" Too many thoughts were flowing through his mind for him to focus on just one.

Weiss shook her head. "Yang was trying to get away from you, in order to do that she had to end the bet." She scoffed at the statement. "She really didn't need to, Blake probably wouldn't have stopped her had Yang not approached her about it. In the end, Blake refused to let Yang run."

Jaune barely heard a word she said as she carried on. "Yang really wasn't thinking clearly.

Jaune spoke no louder than a whisper. "Yang would rather give up one of the things she loves most in this world, than to give me a chance?"

"What, thats-" Weiss turned back to where Jaune was but found herself alone.

* * *

Blake saw Weiss approach before the rest of them, she also noticed the panicked look in her eyes before she hid it away.

"Blake, I need to speak with you for a moment." She didn't so much as glance at Yang or Ruby, the two exchanging looks as the heiress lead Blake away. "We have a slight, small, incredibly minuscule, problem."

Blake narrowed her eyes. "What kind of problem?"

Weiss looked more awkward than Blake had ever seen her, only adding to the concern. "Jaune is gone."

It was a full thirty seconds before she was able to respond. "What do you mean, gone?"

"I mean, he isn't here. He left."

Blake became confused. "Isn't that the plan? He's supposed to wait for Yang in the training room, right?"

Weiss winced. "This is… different. I may have… said something." Blake scowled at her, prompting her to continue. "I may have told him about your bet with Yang… and how that was the only reason the two started hanging out…"

Blake had never seen Weiss look so ashamed, she understood why. "Oh , you've got to be kidding me." She brought a hand to her face. "What did he say?"

Weiss seemed to regain some of her composure, focusing on the task at hand. "He seemed hurt that Yang would go to such lengths to avoid him." She gestured towards Yang, more specifically her new hairstyle. "She gave up something she loved, just to avoid him."

Blake groaned. "How did he come to that conclusion?"

"Um" Weiss coughed into her fist and blushed. "That's not important. The point is, you need to go talk to him."

"Me?!" Blake lowered her voice when she realized how loud she had been. "Why me?"

"Then his team, or Ruby, or anyone else!" Weiss sighed. "This isn't my area of expertise… I would just make this worse."

Blake sighed, even though she was probably right about herself being a bad choice. Ruby would probably be just as bad for this. "When did my life become so… dramatic?"

She began looking over the floor for the rest of his team, they were the safest bet to try and help him… unless. She let her eyes fall over her partner. "I have an idea."

Weiss seemed relieved for all of a second before she realized where Blake was looking, and just who at. "That… seems like a poor idea."

"You said you told him about the bet, right?" Weiss didn't respond verbally, only nodding her head softly, "His team can't tell him how she feels" Blake took a deep breath. "She's the only one who can."

"She cut her hair to avoid him, why would she talk to him now?"

"Because he's the one whose hurting now, not just herself." Yang wouldn't sit by while he felt so hurt… she hoped.

Blake approached her friend cautiously, earning more than her fair share of weird looks. She stood there in silence, searching for how to broach the subject.

"What?" Yang seemed appropriately suspicions.

"There's… a problem." Blake swallowed, finding it increasingly difficult. "With Jaune." Yang froze, and for a moment Blake thought she might actually leave. She continued speaking before she had the chance. "He had a plan to try and make you feel better."

Yang seemed surprised but Blake continued. "He thought that he was at fault for driving you off and decided to try and make it up to you." she paused a moment to let it sink in. "He got the training rooms reserved from Glynda to try and set up a spar with you, the same thing that built your friendship in the first place, he... planned on asking you out. He wanted to give a relationship a chance."

Yang blushed slightly at the thought as a half sad smile came to her face. Her voice was somewhere between somber and heartfelt. "Oh Jaune…"

"That was before he found out about the bet though."

Yang's expression shifted to one of confusion. "What does that have to do with this?"

Blake gestured her arm in the general direction Jaune had fled in. "He already thought this whole thing was his fault, he already blamed himself. Now to hear that you had a wager on him, that the kindness you had shown when helping train him was for your own benefit-" Blake took a moment to breath. "He needs help, he needs you to talk to him."

Yang was justly hesitant. "I don't think that would be a good idea. We had-"

Blake didn't let her finish. "You told me you didn't want to end up like your father… or your mother. From how you're acting and what you've told me… you've never been closer to being her."

Yang stepped back in shock. It took Blake a moment to fully realize what she had said, and just how hard her partner would take those words. "Yang, I…" Part of her wanted to take it back, but the rest of her knew that it was for the best. "You aren't your parents, you can forge your own path, but… in the end, you have to choose it."

Yang looked hurt, the look of shock from earlier still clear on her face, but it was shrouded in something else. Blake hopped it was something good.

Blake wasn't sure how long they stood there in silence, waiting for Yang to make up her mind. It felt like an eternity had passed before Yang finally spoke. "Do you know where he went?"

Blake smiled as her partner made the right choice. "Not precisely, but I have a hunch."

* * *

The walk to the training rooms had been a stressful one. Every step of the way Yang was trying to think of what to say, of how to handle the current issue. She hadn't come up with anything by the time they approached the entrance way.

"What makes you think he'd come here?" Yang asked in confusion. "If he changed his mind, why would he follow the plan?" Her argument was invalidated by the sound of punching from coming from the room.

Blake's grin was all too self served. "You wore off on him. He's upset and this is a good outlet."

Yang sent a glare her partners way before taking a deep breath, and opening the door.

The room was dimly lit, only the lights over the arena being on. Jaune stood in the middle punching a dummy. He was still in his suit and hadn't bothered to retrieve his weapon, even if it was sitting only a few feet away.

She stood in the doorway for a moment just taking it all in, before taking a few more steps. The sound of her heels clicking against the floor gave her away immediately but Jaune didn't look away from his task.

His form was sloppy as well as awkward, but not entirely ineffective. He knew how to punch and how to maximize the force of each hit, something he had picked up from her training most likely.

"I don't want to talk about it" Jaune kept his back facing the door. "The plan's off."

For a moment Yang thought about leaving then, a small part of her brain saying it was for the best. To run away and let him deal with it. She hated the thought for existing in the first place and she steady herself to speak.

"And what plan was that?" She had expected him to be startled to hear her voice, to laugh awkwardly or stutter a response. What she hadn't expected was for him to stop his 'spar' and refuse to turn to her.

"Which one of them sent you?" His voice wasn't angry but it carried a pure neutral tone she had never heard from him before.

"I think it was Blake's idea" And what an idea it was. "though Ruby and Weiss supported it." She took a few more steps into the room.

"Ah" was all he said before continuing his spar with the training dummy.

She didn't know where to go from there, he hadn't directed the conversation or even offered her a way to. He had simply responded, it was clear he had no intention of doing anything more.

In the end Yang took a deep breath and spoke. "We need to talk." She walked further, placing herself only a few feet away from him. He stopped his spar again.

Jaune's laugh came out weak, more of a chuckle, and felt broken. "What is there to talk about? I'm sorry I ruined your bet, Blake and Weiss would have made quite the statement showing up together."

Yang winced but was undeterred. "Jaune, I never meant to-"

"To what?!" He finally turned to look at her, his eyes flashing with an uncharacteristic anger. Yang was startled and took a few steps back. "To have me find out? To develop feelings for me?" Yang tried to interrupt but he wouldn't let her. "I trusted you, you helped me do things I never thought I could! You helped me for no other reason than to be a good friend… or so I thought."

Yang shook her head and pressed forward, walking up onto the actual arena. "I never meant to hurt you." She attempted to force all her emotion into her eyes. "I started this as a bet, that's true, but… Jaune, that was only ever the training." He turned away from her. "We developed a friendship the same as anyone else, it just started different."

Jaune exhaled sharply. "Yeah, different." He turned to look at her once more. "If you were my friend, if we were ever truly as close as you say, then why did you cut your hair?" Yang looked away from him. "Exactly… The fact is, you gave up something you love to avoid me, and I, ever the fool, thought you might like me."

It took Yang a moment to gain her breath, the sheer weight of his words punching the air from her lungs. "Jaune, I… I do like you." She took a few more steps forward.

"Then why did you run?" He turned back to her again, this time with a different emotion in his eyes. "Why wouldn't you talk to me?" his voice shook for a moment. "Why am I not good enough?"

"I ran because..." Yang thought carefully. She didn't want to tell him the truth, even now she was scared of what that might do. In the end though, she couldn't bare for Jaune to blame himself for her actions. "Did I ever tell you the story of my dad?"

Jaune seemed surprised by the sudden topic shift. "No"

"My dad fell in love with his teammate, and for a while everything seemed to be going good. They got married and before long my mother was pregnant with me." Yang took a deep breath, biting back her anger at the next part. "After I came along though… well, she left."

Jaune seemed surprised but she continued before he could interrupt. "My uncle says it hurt my dad a lot, but thankfully for everyone Summer was there to pick him back up. Before long, they were married and Ruby came along. Everything really was perfect… than Summer died."

Yang took a breath and continued on. "This time it broke my dad. It took him a long time to get back on his feet, he hasn't really been the same since." Yang looked away from Jaune, no longer able to look at anything other than the floor. "It's not an excuse but… I was terrified of ending up like him. I still am." She forced herself to look up at Jaune again. "I'm terrified of losing someone I love… that's why I ran."

All the anger, all the hate that had been on Jaune's face, faded away. "Yang, I… I never knew."

Yang turned and walked over to a nearby table before bending over and taking her heels off. "I don't like to talk about it, it… makes me feel vulnerable." She turned and walked back over to the arena. "Still want to spar?" He seemed confused. "You were mad, you have every right to be. So we're gonna fight and fix this, once and for all."

He seemed hesitant but before long nodded softly. He made to move for his weapon but she stopped him. "Hand to hand today."

Jaune was confused but set himself up opposite her, and allowed her to make the first move. She did so with an overly obvious move directed towards his left side. "I'm sorry that I ran."

He brought his arm over, pushing her punch to the side. She redirected her weight, allowing her to follow up. "I'm sorry that I hurt you."

This time he dodged to the side before launching his own attack, as he finally decided to go on the offensive. It was slow, especially compared to what they normally did, but it was relaxing.

"I'm sorry I was so stupid." She couldn't take it anymore.

Jaune took a hit from her on his wrist, powering through to offer his own in exchange. "Yang, I-"

"I'm sorry for ruining everything." She had finally had enough. It had been an emotional day, getting her hair cut, learning how she had hurt Jaune, telling him about her fears. She felt her eye's water slightly. "I'm sorry for-"

Jaune grabbed her wrists, pulling her against his chest, bending his neck down slightly as they locked lips. For a moment the world fell away, the only two things in existence where the two of them.

This kiss was… different from the last. It was just as enjoyable but it had more... emotion in it. She never wanted it to end. She felt her lungs burn and she pulled away as she felt herself blush.

Jaune grinned slightly."You aren't your parents." He took a moment to breath as his face began to practically glow red. "Yang Xiao Long, would you be willing to go out with me?"

She was still dazed from their kiss, needing a minute to think. Her heart wanted to, it wanted to more than anything else in the world, but her mind was still unsure. The doubt was still there. She thought of all the time's she had seen her dad when he thought no one was looking, the distant stares and single tears hidden from his daughters, but she also thought of something else.

She thought of all the stories he would tell, of how happy he always seemed remembering them or the way he always smiled the brightest when thinking about Summer. He didn't regret falling in love, not even for a second. Yang made her choice.

She had apparently spent too much time thinking, as Jaune began to pull away. "I-I understand if you dont-" She pulled him close, linking her hands behind his neck as she returned the kiss from earlier.

"I would love to." She couldn't keep the giddy smile off her face as Jaune's expression changed from one of apprehension to complete and utter joy.

"We should probably get back to the dance, people will begin to talk." He stepped back, finally untangling himself from her. "Would you do me the honor of being my date to the dance?"

She put a finger to her chin. "I don't know, it's kind of short notice." She gave him a smile to show she was joking. "I would love to."

She pulled him close again but this time, she allowed herself to enjoy it.

* * *

**Authors Notes: I DID IT! IT IS DONE… or is it?!**

**That's actually a question for all of you. I left this open enough so that I could give it a sequel if that idea is popular enough, there is story potential for it so… let me know.. honestly I might do it regardless but your thoughts and opinions always matter. That being said, even if you all want that sequel it will be 3-4 months before I could actually start that. I'll tell you why in a moment. **

**First, I just want to say thanks for reading. This story couldn't have become what it was without an active audience enjoying it, and I hope you truly have enjoyed the story. I know it has its flaws, clunky dialogue, time skips, holes in logic, and I would have liked to add another 3-4 chapters throughout this story if I had the time, sadly I don't. **

**I really enjoyed writing this one, seriously I can't stress that enough. I have had a blast, which is the reason a sequel is on the table. I can't wait to get back to writing. Which leads me to the next point.**

**Let me explain why. I leave for Army basic training tomorrow… today? Idk it's one AM right now. Anyways, the point is I cant write fanfiction while I'm at that… I know, a real tragedy, but I WILL BE BACK. I really like writing and telling stories, and I'm maybe kinda sort of half not bad at it… perhaps. **

**Before I end it I just want to say a HUGE thanks to my editor, General Mayhem, for all his hard work. He has been solo editing this one so his work cant be stressed enough. Thank you. **

**I hope you enjoyed the journey and I hope you join me again. Remember to review and give me your thoughts.**

**Sincerely, SardonicEffigy.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Notes: I've decided to go ahead and continue off of the last story, instead of creating an entirely new one. This way I get to keep the following this story has already gotten. **

**I'll make a note at the bottom talking a bit more in depth about the story from a writers perspective. ****Also, we have a cover finally! a good friend of mine drew this beauty for me, cant thank her enough. deadzombo on twitter. **

**Ok, enough of me talking. Enjoy. **

* * *

The walk back towards the dance was slow, the two enjoying each others company and in no real rush to get back to the crowds or loud noise.

The distant music and soft murmur of the ballroom in the distance making their little slice of silence feel all the more special. The anxiety and nervousness about their current situation being fought back by the comfortable atmosphere.

Remnants shattered moon sat low in the sky, lighting up the night and allowing them to see. In the end however, it wasn't the shattered beauty of the heavens, or the stars that penetrated the darkness, nor the soft wind blowing through carrying the smell of the ocean that really grabbed Yangs attention.

Instead, all her focus was on the blonde idiot standing next to her.

Her mind racing with excitement and doubt, she hadn't had enough time to let it all sink in. She didn't know what was in store for Jaune and her, she hoped for the best but… life could be complicated. At the very least she refused to sit by and be left wondering later in life.

She shook her head in an attempt to remove her own thoughts. It hadn't even been twenty minutes, they hadn't even gone on a date yet and she was already starting to think about the long term.

Jaune himself appeared to be more than a little nervous about the whole thing, trying to keep her entertained but also trying to avoid making her mad. In truth, Yang was fine with him acting normal… not that she planned on telling him, this way was far more entertaining to watch for the time being.

"I don't see why you couldn't man up sooner." She no longer had to come up with an excuse to tease him, that was a detail she planned to abuse.

"Me!?" His expression was one of utter disbelief. "I don't know how to talk to females, let alone the pretty ones!" Yang had to look away, in a futile attempt to hide her blush at the accidental compliment. It was strange really, she had heard far better lines said to her in an attempt to get her to go on a date and they failed to even make her flinch, but he managed to do it with no real effort at all. "Besides, you certainly could have said something sooner."

Yang winced slightly. She couldn't argue with his words, instead settling for a punch to the arm as she adopted a smug grin. "So when is this date you wanted to go on?"

His blush practically doubled in intensity, turning a shade darker than Ruby's cape, and for a moment she thought he might actually get a nose bleed. "Well… um… we have the missions tomorrow and those could last a little while." He took a deep breath. "I was thinking as soon as we got back, maybe get some food, see a movie or something."

"I don't know…" She drew the thought out. "It doesn't sound expensive enough." Jaune made to say something but she continued on, dropping the teasing. "It sounds perfect, I can't wait fo-"

There was a loud crash throughout the area as the window to the CCT broke, someone jumping out of it. Their peaceful walk back couldn't last it seemed,

"Um… I'm fairly certain thats illegal…" Jaune, ever the observant one, was the first to speak.

Yang looked on in confusion for a moment, until she spotted Ruby standing at the CCT window. It wasn't a difficult jump in logic to guess the two had been fighting, simply judging by the speed at which the female was running. That was simply unacceptable.

Yang was chasing the woman down a second later. It took Jaune a moment to realise she left, Jaune trailing a little bit behind her.

"Hey!" She made an attempt to get the woman's attention. "Stop right there!" The woman looked over her shoulder and kept running. It was kind of useless really, and Yang knew that, but it was an attempt to try and resolve the conflict peacefully instead of with straight up violence. She was willing to admit her approach could use some work but in the end she got what she needed.

Her hunch had been confirmed, whatever this person was up to wasn't good.

She heard some guards yelling from the street, but they were too far away to catch her, instead following as fast as they could manage. Jaune and her could handle her anyways, they weren't exactly pushovers. Besides, it seemed the woman preferred running instead of fighting.

As if to prove her wrong the woman in question turned around and with a flick of her wrists summoned a bow from nowhere, firing off two arrows. Yang was able to pull her aura up in time but made a note about the ability.

Who knew what else she might have been able to summon.

The group turned a corner, right into a dead end.

"Nowhere left to run now, huh?" Jaune finally caught up, dropping into a low stance and preparing for a fight.

The woman didn't say anything but assumed a fighting stance, crouching low and pulling the bow up as she knocked an arrow.

She fired the arrow, landing a hit on Jaune's forearm causing his aura to flare slightly. Yang used this chance to charge the woman. As she did so, however, she noticed a slight grin on her face.

The woman rolled under Yang's first punch, dodging her kick and slipping right past her. Jaune attempted to stop her, successfully putting himself in her path only to be taken off guard when she leapt several feet into the air and kicked him in the side of the face, sending him crashing into the wall.

By the time the woman landed Yang was engaging her once more, or at least attempting to. Agility seemed to be her greatest weapon, rarely actually using the bow instead choosing to duck out of the way and attempt to get Yang off her feet.

Jaune had gotten back up and attempted to re-engage, but without his weapon he was at a disadvantage. The limited knowledge he had on hand-to-hand showing itself in how easily the woman tore his guard apart.

It was at this moment the Atlas guards finally arrived. The woman seemed more annoyed than anything else, flipping around Yang to hide from the soldiers, using her as cover.

Jaune attempted to restrain her, successfully gaining a hold on her, before the woman spun him around and threw him at the guards, knocking them over. She didn't waste anytime, sprinting through the gap in an attempt to escape. Rounding the corner in a rush.

Yang attempted to pursue but by the time she rounded the corner there was no sight of the woman, she had simply vanished.

"...damn it!" Yang made her frustration known.

"Who was that?" Jaune was the first person to follow after her. "I didn't recognize her weapons, did you?"

Yang shook her head as the soldiers fanned out across the area in an attempt to find a trail, she didn't think they'd find anything. In the end it didn't matter, her part was over for now. She had a more important thing to attend to.

She was gonna have a serious talk with Ruby about rushing off into danger.

She sprinted off as fast as she could, Jaune following close behind.

* * *

"This is precisely my point Ozpin." James gestured to the camera recording they had just been viewing. "Things are happening here that you have no clue about, the school is no longer secure."

"And what would you have us do?" He posed the question honestly. "Station soldiers and machines up on every corner? Hover your fleet above the city?"

James was a good man but he lacked the experience Ozpin had. It was not something that could be held against someone but it was often difficult to get that point across.

A needlessly heavy approach was rarely the right one.

"All I ask is that you take this more seriously!" The Generals face was red with frustration, their debate having gone on for some time. "Amber is not safe here, we need to move her somewhere else!"

Ozpin raised an eyebrow. "This again?" James made to interrupt but he continued. "We will not be sending her to Atlas, that much has been established, the same goes for the relic."

The General sighed. "Then let me bring forces to bolster your own."

"Have you not already done so? Is a fleet not enough to provide aid should we need it?" Ozpin gesture to the eyesores constantly visible from his window.

"Vale doesn't have to stand alone Ozpin. Let Atlas help, let me help." The General begged for not the first time.

Ozpin sighed. "And how do you plan to do that?" In the end, it never hurt to hear your allies ideas, especially your friends.

James nodded gesturing back to the video. "We know she's an agent of whoever attacked Amber, if not the one herself. We also know about strange activity in Mountain Glenn." The General paused for effect, Ozpin waited patiently for him to continue. "Let me send in my men, we can search the area thoroughly and find whoever or whatever is hiding there… and then bring them to justice for what they've done."

The idea wasn't too far from what Ozpin had already been planning, all though it was on a far larger scale. "Discretion is out best weapon James, I've tried to make that clear. I will not approve such an obvious action."

"So you'll just leave them there? Doing who knows what in that graveyard?" James was unable to wait, or perhaps unwilling. Ozpin understood his reasons though, the longer they waited to act the worse it could get.

"On the contrary, I plan to take this very seriously." He reached down for the mug sitting on his desk. "I plan to send a team to investigate."

James seemed to relax some at the notion. "Who did you plan on sending?" Ozpin didn't answer. "You can't be serious, they're still students!" his anger came back far more focused.

"I assure you, team RWBY is more than capable and they will have a professor to help them."

James turned and moved to the window, looking out over the academy. "One team of hunters in training isn't enough ozpin. Even with a professor, they are skilled but they don't have the same context for what we're fighting here. Unless you plan to send Glynda-"

"Of course not, she is better served elsewhere." Ozpin took another sip from his coffee. "I was going to send one of our new hires, he's on a transfer program to help diversify the students training." He knew James would be upset before he even said it "Professor Branwen."

The General took a moment to think. "He is certainly more than skilled enough to complete the mission." Ozpin was surprised, that was possibly the nicest thing James had ever said about Qrow. "But does he have the experience to lead? and even with such an experienced hunter, that doesn't make up for the fact that the other four are still in training."

"I assure you, he is up to the task." Ozpin couldn't help but agree to part of his statement however. "Though I do acknowledge that four hunters in training isn't enough." The relief on James face was going to be short lived. "We will also send team JNPR."

To say he seemed frustrated would be an understatement. "Are you trying to risk everything Ozpin?" He turned away from the window finally, face made of granite as he spoke. "You also want to send our best candidate for the transfer on a deadly mission. What has gotten into you?"

The decision wasn't one he came to lightly, he was well aware of the immense risk they would be taking, but the benefits outweighed the dangers. "We need to know how she will act under serious situations, actual combat not simply an arena."

He had been considering sending them since Miss Rose had told them about what the woman had said. Oh he knew she was lying when she said the mysterious woman had said something, but he also knew her team had been investigating the White Fang for sometime. With Miss Belladonna on the team he expected they would turn up something big sooner or later.

His only apprehension to sending team Jnpr was concern that they might not all be up to the task, but recent events had shown that quite untrue.

"My decision is made James." He would trust Ruby, and if things went poorly he would trust Qrow and the two teams fighting ability. "I will allow you to select the second teams leader however, whoever you deem fit to go with. Make no mistake though, Qrow is the one leading this mission."

"I'll send you her file right away." James departed for the elevator, leaving in silence.

Ozpin didn't doubt for a second who he was going to send, she was his best after all. He simply hoped that Qrow and her would be able to work well together, given their history.

He had full faith in Miss Schnee's ability to remain professional, it was Qrow that he had to be worried about. With his nieces there, and Miss Schnee's sister as well, he had faith that they would be able to put it aside.

* * *

"Yang~ I'm fine." Ruby couldn't sit still under her sisters inspection. "It was hardly a fight, she ran away before it could get serious." The fact and logic didn't seem to register in Yang's brain.

Team Rwby and Jnpr had both gotten word about Ruby's fight, each member of the teams had come to check on their friend immediately. Some literally running from the ballroom, Jaune was surprised Weiss could move so quickly the way she was dressed.

"What were you thinking!?" Yang seemed to calm down a bit once she knew Ruby wasn't hurt, quickly switching to interrogation mode.

Ruby seemed to shrink back a little bit before rambling something out to fast for most of them to understand, Yang had no such issues however and their argument went on for some time.

The rest of the group sat and watched with amusement as the two sisters went back and forth. Until Weiss had finally had enough and broke it up.

"Enough" The single word serving to quiet both of the sisters down, though the look on Yang's face said that it was far from over. "Now that we know Ruby is uninjured, we have another matter to deal with." She let the words hang open for a moment.

Ren was the one to figure out what she meant. "Just who was it that she fought?"

Blake following quickly after. "And what did they want?"

All eyes turned to Ruby. The girl in question seemed surprised that they expected her to have the answers. "How should I know? She didn't say anything."

"Did either of you recognize her?" Weiss turned to Yang and Jaune.

Jaune thought hard for a moment. There were a lot of people at Beacon but he couldn't think of who the woman they fought might have been. He thought that he might have seen that hair once or twice but people could easily have the same hair style. "I've got nothing."

"I can't think of anyone either, and I can guarantee there isn't anyone that fights the same way as her, at least not in our grade." Yang took a moment to think. "She was more agile than most, maybe a bit shy of Blake on that front, but she was strong too. She also only used her weapon a couple times, usually preferring to get in close."

Jaune thought back on the fight. "Now that you mention it, she had a long ranged weapon but always closed the distance to fight us."

"It's not unusual for people to practice with multiple weapons, but when they do they tend to prefer one over another." Ren offered what he could. "Perhaps she's used to melee combat more than ranged?"

"That doesn't narrow down the search." Blake seemed understandably frustrated with the news. "What was she trying to accomplish?"

There was a pause of silence in the room before Pyrrha spoke. "I think the more important question is whether she succeeded or not…"

The thought was truly an unsettling one and for a moment none of them could muster the courage to say anything.

Nora was the one to lighten the mood. "How come the two of you didn't pummel her into the ground?" It wasn't really her words that eased the tension, so much as the energy behind them.

"I've never fought someone like that before, she was just too quick. She was ready to dodge every punch or kick before I even threw them." Yang seemed a little bit sore about the topic but went on anyways. "It was worse than fighting Pyrrha, the woman refused to stay in place for more than a second. At least with Pyrrha she lets you hit her a bit before tossing you around." she sighed. '"I was losing the entire time… she was just the better fighter

The champion blushed slightly at the compliment. "It's not about who's better or worse, it's about technique." The group went silent for a moment, though only Jaune seemed to be the one not understanding what she meant. "You're a strength fighter, every hit you land does massive damage to your opponent, in this instance your opponent was to fast for you to hit."

"Any tips for the future?" Yang seemed to appreciate the advice.

"In the long term, I recommend fighting faster opponents. Try getting used to fighting against people like her. In the short term… try using misdirection." Pyrrha winced a little. "That isn't exactly the most helpful though, I would help more if-"

"You're good Pyrrha, that helps more than you know." Yang's words seemed to cheer his partner up, even if it embarrassed her a little.

Pyrrha laughed nervously. "Don't mention it."

Jaune pulled out his scroll to see the time. "It's pretty late, we should probably call it a night."

"Aww, but I wanted to stay and fight the mysterious window woman." Nora's words went unacknowledged by the group.

Most of them heading back to their rooms, though Jaune and Yang decided to hang back for a moment.

Jaune waited for everyone to be gone before speaking. "Pretty crazy night, huh?"

Yang exhaled sharply. "You could say that."

There was a strong silence for a moment as Jaune thought carefully. "It wasn't all bad though… right?"

Yang seemed a little confused by the question for a moment, though she seemed to understand what he was asking. "Jaune, tonight has been a roller coaster…" He made to interrupt but she continued. "But I promise you, I don't regret a single second of it."

Jaune smiled softly at the thought. "So you haven't… you know… changed your mind?"

* * *

Yang scoffed at the very idea. "I'm committed to trying… we'll just have to see if it works.

It hadn't been long enough for her to regret the decision, but she was fairly certain she wouldn't. In the end, however, only time would tell if the magic was there or not. She truly hoped it was.

"So I guess this is goodnight?" Jaune spoke but Yang didn't really hear him. She knew she felt something with him, she knew it was something special, but she didn't know if that would be enough.

In the end, she decided to do more than hope.

She reached up to his neck, pulling him down slightly until their lips were only an inch away from each other. The pause of only a second or two felt like an eternity, the two of them locking eyes seeing if the other wanted to back away. Just as the wait began to feel painful, the two finally met.

In that moment Yang was certain, it would be enough.

* * *

**Author's Notes: Okay, here we are once again… feeling lost but now and then… *cough*... anyways, I hope you enjoyed the chapter and look forward to the future updates. I know I do.**

**This kinda serves as a pilot chapter, being as how I closed most of the plot lines from the original arc, thankfully I still have plenty of room to work with. I fear the kiss in this chapter may have come off a bit rushed and sudden, being unneededly special being as how they've already shared a few that were special but this serves two purposes. **

**First, from the reader's perspective it's been a few months since my last update and this serves as fan service… the non-kinky kind… sort of. Second, from a story perspective it's important to remember Yang's doubts are still present despite the fact that she wants to try… the question is whether that'll be enough… don't want to spoil anything, I wont say anymore. **

**I have my reasons, however rushed or stupid they may seem. I also want to apologize for the slight drop in quality, I'm a little rusty and need to regain my writing ability.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I encourage you to review, it only helps the story.**

**Sincerely SardonicEffigy**


	15. Chapter 15

**Authors Notes: ****Don't Stop, Don't stop, we're in luck now. Don't stop, there's so much to be found!**

… **At this rate I'ma get copyright striked or some shit. **

* * *

A soft glow was the first thing he noticed as he opened his eyes. The early morning sun lighting up their room and serving as an effective alarm.

Jaune sat up in his bed, today was finally the day. Team JNPR would be put to the test, he would be put to the test.

He shifted over, planting his feet on the floor. Taking a moment to stretch, feeling the stiffness slowly melt away as his body finally started to warm up.

Today was the day.

Jaune looked around the room, surprised to find that he was the first of the group to truly wake up. Though he supposed it made sense, he hadn't slept much the night before. To concerned about the upcoming mission and other recent events to focus on sleep.

His mind drifted to said other events, to one blonde brawler. His cheeks growing more red by the second as he thought of the nights previous events. The dopey grin that soon found its way onto his face only serving to enhance the effect.

With a deep breath he brushed such thoughts aside, he had to focus.

He stood up, and grabbing his clothes from his closet, headed to the bathroom to change.

It was going to be a long day, he knew that much. He decided to enjoy the extra few minutes he had in the shower. It was anyone's guess how long the mission would take.

From what he had heard from the upper year students, these missions could last anywhere from a couple days to weeks, one group had even been gone a month and a half a couple years back. It all depended on your mission.

Shadowing was the easiest he had heard, just tagging along with an official hunter and some kind of law enforcement. Having them teach you how to work with your civilian counterparts.

Escorts were longer, typically helping VIPs get to some remote settlement out in the wilderness.

Guarding a village or settlement were the most common though. A sudden surge of grimm could spell the difference between life and death for people far from the safety of the kingdom. They could last anywhere from weeks to months for real hunters, but the students typically only got the small ones.

The most dangerous were the hunts. Grimm didn't always just throw themselves at you, which meant you had to track them down. Those were the most dangerous and had the highest casualty rates, but they also paid the best.

There were a couple other dozen types of missions they might have been sent on, sadly there was no way of knowing which one until later this afternoon. Which sucked, he really wanted to know what he was getting into, if for no other reason than to prepare.

All he could do for now was prepare the bare essentials and enjoy his shower.

He took a deep breath of the steam, releasing it with a sigh. He would have his team, his friends, and when he got back… he'd have a girl waiting for him as well.

The blush from earlier returned once more as he let out a soft chuckle. She already had him wrapped around her fingers and they hadn't actually gone on a date yet.

Yang must never know.

* * *

Yang watched with amusement as Ruby lead their team down the hallway. Her sister practically vibrating with anticipation.

"Ah, It's finally here!" Ruby yelled. "Our first mission!" she paused a moment, "Well… out first real mission."

Her sheer excitement seemed to be infectious. Weiss hadn't even snipped at her partner yet. Well, less than usual anyways.

They walked to the main hall, along with every first year student at Beacon. Yang thought it said something that more people seemed excited with the idea of fighting grimm than worried.

Beacon was crazy like that.

The students had gathered to check the mission board, a large screen set up to display what each team had been assigned.

There were a number of side terminals meant to allow people to look up their teams, something very few of the students seemed to notice. Most watching their team names appear on screen. They made it into some kind of spectator sport.

She spotted team JNPR standing by one of said side terminals, or rather she spotted Nora jumping and waving at them.

Weiss tried to step in a different direction but ruby had already grabbed her friend and began to drag her in their direction, much to the heiress' protest.

Yang hid her laughter behind a fist before following with her own partner.

Nora and Ruby seemed to be having a rather energetic conversation, one which Weiss was desperately trying to escape from judging by her pointed glares at anybody to come help her. No one did.

A distracted Nora was a perfect Nora.

She turned to her scraggly young suitor, Jaune, who was looking up their team on the terminal.

"Maybe there was a mistake?" She heard Pyrrha speaking to her partner.

"Whats up Pyr?" Yang wrapped an arm around them both.

"Our team wasn't given a mission." Jaune answer for her.

Yang turned her attention to the screen where team JNPR was displayed. True to his words the mission assignment was left blank.

"It's probably just a glitch. Pull up our team..." Jaune nodded at her words as he brought up team RWBY's screen, which was also broken. "See, this terminal must be broken."

"It's not broken, kiddo." The three of them standing at the console jumped at the sudden words.

Yang knew who it was before she even looked. There was only one person who called her that.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby yelled before Yang had a chance to. She also moved at him with semblance enhanced speed. Qrow only stayed on his feet due to practice, as Ruby gave him a hug that might have been classified as lethal by sheer momentum. "Hi."

"Hey to you too." Qrow turned to Yang. "The computers not broken, headmaster wanted to give you your mission in person. Sent me to retrieve ya."

The two teams shared a few looks of confusion between one another before turning back to him. Yang was the one to voice their confusion. "And why did he send you?"

_/-/_

"I can't believe we are going on a mission with Uncle Qrow!" Ruby's excitement from earlier had somehow doubled since they had been told the news. "This is the coolest!"

Yang couldn't help but agree. She was excited about the missions of course, just like every other student. That wasn't to say she hadn't been a little worried too.

With Qrow though? She knew they would all come back.

Yang knew Qrow wasn't as badass as he no doubt thought he was, but even with that in consideration he was still probably one of the best. To hear that he would be leading team RWBY, it had been something to calm some of her nerves.

It also raised a few questions. Such as what kind of mission they were about to be sent on that it required such as skilled huntsman? Or why Jaunes team was here with them?

Questions the headmaster would no doubt answer, just as soon as he stopped drinking coffee and generally acting like they weren't there!

Qrow coughed into his fist. A sound serving to emphasise how awkward the silence had become.

Even with his flawless technique it still took a minute or two before any actual words were said.

"No doubt you want to know why I brought you all here." The headmaster rose from behind his desk, taking a few steps around it to address them in a more direct manner. "As I know you all have noticed, the White Fang have become a rather uncomfortable presence within the city." Nobody missed how he looked at Blake, nor how the faunus girl winced slightly at the words.

"We know that you found something out, no doubt that's why Ruby was trying to edge us in the direction of Mountain Glenn." This time it was Ruby's turn to wince, even as the group looked to her. "In the future, it would mean far more if you could be a little more direct about it."

There was a moment of silence before he continued. "I understand however. You fear we are not doing enough about these recent developments, or worse yet that we are choosing to ignore them all together. Am I far off?" Nobody could speak as the headmaster looked at them. "We take these matters very seriously, and we understand how frustrating it can be to be patient."

Again the headmaster paused. "That is why we you have been assigned with this mission. You are going after Torchwick and the White Fang." Their confusion must have been evident. "I will not force this upon you however, if any of you should not wish to be involved you are free to go. You shall be given full credit and nobody will think less of you for it."

They all looked amongst themselves, before they all seemed to come to the same conclusion.

To no one's surprise, it was Ruby who spoke for them. "We'll do it!"

* * *

The Headmaster finished telling them about their mission, as well as who would be leading both teams, and then dismissed them allowing them to make any last minute plans before heading down to the bullhead that would shuttle them to Mountain Glenn.

Jaune had gone straight to the bullhead, not wanting to get distracted… ok, in truth he was concerned he might try to run. The hope was that he could talk to someone in private, sadly it seemed he was the only person to do so.

He was left alone with his thoughts. Mountain Glenn was not an unfamiliar name to him, his mother had mentioned it once or twice. She had been one of the children orphaned by the disaster. It made him sick to think that he was heading to the place where his grandparents had died.

His breath left him in uneasy waves, his hands shaking as he thought on. It took all his willpower to attempt and force a calm over himself. Resting a hand on the hilt of Crocea Mors, the leathery grip giving him at least something else to focus on.

It didn't do much for his overall mood, nor did it stop his body from shaking, but… it helped.

The quiet atmosphere was finally broken by a voice. "It is not uncommon to become nervous before a mission." The sudden voice made him jump slightly.

Winter Schnee was… intimidating, to say the least. She projected an air of confidence, but also one of terror.

"Sorry, I'm probably just over reacting." He attempted to reason with his own logic.

"I think not." The elder Schnee positioned herself beside the bullhead. "Missions such as these can go wrong quite easily."

Jaune waited for her to go on, sadly she didn't. "Ah." It was all he could say, what really did she expect.

Maybe it was because his response, or maybe it was her plan. Whatever it was, she added one final comment before disappearing into the Bullhead.

"Your team is strong however, and you are not alone." The words were simple and they didn't really have the profound meaning he had hoped they would, but he knew she was right.

It was the presence of a very different woman that finally put him at ease.

"You ready Vomit-boy?" Yang appeared by his side.

A smile fought its way onto his face at the rather… unique, monicker. "When am I going to get a different nickname?"

Yang brought a finger to her chin. "Hmm, I don't know. Let's see how you do on the flight over there." She sent him a look that was both teasing and threatening him if he dare throw up near her, or rather her hair.

"I look forward to it being written on my tombstone." The two of them laughed softly, the stress finally starting to take a back seat. His body stopped shaking, his breathing returning to normal.

He glanced over to her subtly. Her short hair blowing in the wind as the sun seemed to reflect off it. For a second it looked like fire had engulfed it. The bright smile on her face stole his breath away.

She noticed him looking and blushed slightly before asking with uncertainty. "You… still like the haircut?"

Jaune tried to speak, only to find that he still hadn't taken a breath.

"Who's ready for some fun!" Nora ruined the moment, slapping a hand on his back.

Yang looked away for a moment, regaining her composure before turning back. "Ready to knock some heads?"

Nora turned her attention away from Jaune. "I can't wait!"

Ren shook his head at the display, Pyrrha hiding her laughter behind a fist. It seemed that they had chosen their moment of interruption carefully.

Jaune wasn't sure how he felt about that, thankfully he wasn't given time to.

The rest of team RWBY approached from behind a nearby pillar.

Had they been watching too?

"Nora!" Ruby griped playfully. "Why did you have to ruin the moment?"

Nora looked towards the smaller girl, before looking back at Jaune and Yang. "Oh…Oh!... _Ooooh_." She took a few steps back. "Go ahead, continue. Just act like we aren't here!"

Jaune sighed, bringing a hand to his forehead. He was fairly certain he heard a few sounds of hands slapping into faces in disappointment.

The smile that came to his face was still an honest one, however. Trust Nora to lighten the mood. It was nice and allowed him to think on Mrs Schnee's words.

He had his team, not to mention Yang's team as well. They weren't alone, they had each other, and he was fully confident in their ability.

They would not only survive, they would return victorious.

"Alright kiddos, everyone on board the bullhead." Mr Branwen pulled his flask out and took a drink.

Jaune stretched his muscles a little bit before turning to the bullhead.

This was going to be an interesting mission...

* * *

**Authors Note: Not really a lot to say here, stuff happened, things are underway. **

**I've got the plot line and end goal of the story lined out now, so that's good. All that being said your suggestions can still make a difference so… suggest away. **

**Sadly my really really good editor is no longer available for editing so that means the story may get a bit more… rough. So reviews are more important than ever… hint hint.**

**Real quick I want to mention that I have a pat reon (Fanfiction sensors this word) now! So… if you want to donate and help me with further projects I would appreciate it. It supports more than just my fanfiction writing however, it includes an original project that is in early development. **

**If you're interested simply look up my username on pat reon. (Like, of all the words to refuse and allow. Thats the one? not swears or hard core porn? self promotion is where you draw the line?) **

**Merry Christmas, Happy holidays, Happy New Years. Cant believe I forgot to say this on the initial upload, my bad.  
****Sincerely SE**


	16. Chapter 16

**Authors Note: Make sure to review this chapter when you're finished.**

* * *

When somebody told you about a failed settlement a lot of images jumped to mind. Mountain Glenn was the very picture of a failed settlement. The damaged buildings, overgrown vegetation and no signs of living life. The very air itself felt heavy, the dreary nature of it affecting them all.

The hardest thing to see, however, were the signs of everyday life. Grocery stores, bikes, signs declaring children at play. It was difficult to stomach.

The group stood there in silence as they all took it in. The trained huntsmen gave them a moment to process it.

Jaune would have thanked them for it, had he been able to speak. It hurt his heart to think of the struggle the people would have gone through towards the end.

After a few moments they began to focus on why they were there. Winter stepped out in front of the group.

"Mountain Glenn." She said. "As you can no doubt see, this is a large area to cover. We will be splitting up into your teams and each team will be given a sector to search."

It was a plan they had come up with on the ride over. It was simple enough, even if the idea of splitting up always went wrong in the movies. He wasn't really sure why she felt the need to restate it though he appreciated how it drew his focus back towards the mission.

Ruby stepped forward slightly, Jaune mimicking the action.

"We're ready!" Ruby whispered, but given the silence she may as well have yelled it.

Jaune offered his own affirmation, a small smile spreading across his face as he felt the courage build up inside him.

"Good" Qrow took a drink from the flask on his hip. "Because that grimm is in your teams sector. Come on Ruby, your team is with me." His courage died a swift death.

The specialist glared at Qrow slightly as he turned and left, team RWBY in tow.

"Our mission is not to exterminate grimm. If at all possible, avoid confrontation." Winter looked among them for a moment, sighing softly as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "You don't have to raise your hand."

Nora slowly lowered her hand. "I think they saw us?" The group turned to see the small pack of grimm running at them. "Yep, they definitely saw us."

Jaune heard Winter mumble under her breath. "Somehow this is his fault."

They stood there in silence for a moment, not really sure what to do. He looked to Winter to see her looking at him. Apparently it had been delegated to him to come up with a plan.

Jaune withdrew his sword, a sound of scraping metal ringing out as he did so. A second later his shield was deployed. The rest of his team followed his lead, pulling out their own weapons, getting into various combat poses.

"Nor-" He didn't have to say more. The energetic girl counter charging the pack of grimm. The beowulf's hesitated as she ran at them. Before her hammer smashed into the side of one of their snouts, sending it flying.

That seemed to do the trick and most of the other beowulfs prepared to attack, one lunging at their teammate.

Pyrrha's shield smashed into its chest before bouncing back at the woman who had thrown it. She caught it with ease, leaping at the target and stabbing her javelin at its head.

Ren followed immediately after, sliding under a strike at his head- the grimm stumbled forward, clearly not having expected to miss its target- just as Ren disengaged and went after another target that was about to attack Nora.

The Beowulf made to pursue but was halted by what it saw as new prey.

Jaune was probably the slowest out of his team, granted it was a little unfair. Ren was a ninja, Pyrrha a champion, and Nora… was Nora.

With that being said he felt somewhat confident in terms of brute strength. He took the beowulf's attack on his shield, sliding back a foot or so before coming to a halt.

Maybe that had just been a result of his tutors. Between Pyrrha and Yang he was kind of forced to bulk up a bit. With a single strike, Jaune cleaved the beowulf's head clean off.

He had to squash the relief he felt as it slowly began to fade away. There were plenty more to fight and celebrating too early would cost him.

He turned towards Pyrrha, noticing a grimm moving at her from the side. She could have handled it of course, that didn't stop him from putting himself in between her and it. Angling his shield slightly so that the attack would slide off somewhat, taking most of the creatures force with it.

It was a trick Yang had taught him, or rather one he had been forced to learn in their spars. It forced his opponent to have an opening, something he could take advantage of.

Jaune aimed for centermass as his sword came down at an angle. The beowulf never knew what happened to it.

It didn't take much time for them to dispatch with the small pack. Pyrrha and Nora having taken most down, not that Jaune would complain. Nora deserved to have her fun after all.

It wasn't until they had finished that he realized their huntress hadn't actually helped. She sat at a distance, merely observing. Honestly it felt a little awkward, he was just thankful he didn't seem to be the subject of her focus.

Pyrrha hadn't seemed to notice yet.

* * *

Qrow had told them to split up and search through some of the buildings. Obviously they were supposed to stay within earshot, just in case they stumbled across something. Not that Yang expected to actually find anything.

They hadn't with the last dozen buildings. She knew to stay vigilant, that didn't stop her mind from wandering though. She only wished it would drift towards something else.

This place was... depressing, to say the least. She hadn't found any signs of the White Fang, but she had seen a few things she wish she hadn't.

No bodies, the disaster had been decades ago so thankfully there wasn't anything so direct left. It was the small things that seemed to hit harder though. Things that forced the mind to wonder and imagine what could have happened.

Qrow had made sure to take the darker looking areas, the places that would probably lead to a couple sleepless nights. That still left a lot for the rest of them to find.

Yang let loose a frustrated sigh as the building once again turned out to be abandoned. At this point she just wanted to find the terrorists to help distract her from their surroundings.

Thankfully night was swiftly approaching and they were going to set up camp. It took a little longer than she expected to link up with JNPR but when they did they didn't say anything. The silence was suffocating, even Nora seemed to have been affected by the gloomy atmosphere.

It took an hour or so for them to find a suitable place to sleep. Something that could protect them against grimm, White Fang, and the elements. By that point it was already late and most of them had been looking forward to sleep.

Thankfully Ruby seemed to refuse and let them, instead she had insisted on trying to lighten the mood. At first most of them had only indulged the idea to help her, but it didn't take long for the group to relax some.

Despite what some people may have thought, her sister really was awesome sometimes. Or maybe she was just lucky, either way it helped. It only took a couple jokes for Nora to start helping, her energetic self seeming to infect the rest of them. Even Weiss seemed to have relaxed some.

Weiss' older sister though? not so much. Her and Qrow had pretty much not stopped arguing the whole time. More than one joke about them being an old married couple had been made, only to be killed by the wicked glares from the both of them.

Honestly, that was the best part. They would devolve into bickering a few moments later. They reminded her of Ruby and Weiss at the start of the year, if a little more antagonistic.

It was kinda cute actually, if you ignored the threats of death and violence. The only thing they seemed to agree on was their mutual hatred for each other.

Most of them were sitting around the campfire, though a couple had decided to sit in their sleeping bags. Jaune sat a little farther off though, looking out over the ruins.

It looked kinda… lonely. Yang scoffed, that wouldn't do.

"Hey there vomit-boy." She kept her voice low, trying not to startle him as she approached.

"Hey Yang."

She wasn't really sure what she was going to do. She never had been one for plans. All she knew was that she didn't want him to look so glum.

"You know, you're gonna have to come up with a nickname?" He looked at her with a puzzled look. "I mean, I have one for you."

He raised an eyebrow at her. "So should I relate it to vomit-boy?"

"You could, if you wanted to die." She paused for a moment, sending a glare his way just in case he thought to try it. "You know, all you have to do is ask and I'll stop with the name. I wou-"

"I know, I know." He shook his head slightly. "It doesn't bother me. If anything it's a good reminder of how far I've come."

She stared at him for a moment. "Jaune, we rode the same bullhead here. Trust me, that hasn't come very far." She was able to hold her serious expression for a couple seconds before the two of them collapsed into laughter.

It was nice to see a smile come back to his face, if only for a moment.

His face took a solemn expression a moment later. "What… what did you find? While you were searching the city?"

Yang let loose a heavy sigh. "Pretty much what Qrow said. No sign of the Fang." She paused for a moment, trying to think of something to change the subject to. Maybe it was ignoring a problem but she wanted to forget about where they were, if only for a couple minutes. "I…" She struggled to think of something. "I'm sorry."

Jaunes face contorted in confusion. "What do you have to be sorry for?"

It took her a moment to respond. "For everything I put you through back at Beacon." The thought had weighed on her heart since the dance. Everytime she caught a glimpse of her hair in the corner of her eyes, or when she went to flick it subconsciously. It was a painful reminder of what she had done.

He scoffed. "You didn't do anything to apologise for."

His quick dismissal irritated her. "Didn't do anything? Jaune I befreinded you for a dumb reason, and when I felt like I was in over my head I tried to ignore you." He attempted to interrupt her but she kept going. "I started to have feelings for you and instead of confronting you, I… I ran!" She could feel the frustration and anger coming to the surface. No doubt her eyes had turned red. "I ran without once thinking about how that made you feel! I put myself before you without a second thought and that… you deserve better than that Jaune." She took several deep breaths, attempting to control herself.

"No, I don't." Yang turned to him, only to see him looking the other way. "Yang, I dont _deserve_ better, and even if I did there are few people better than you." She attempted to argue but he went on. "You're a good teammate, an amazing friend, a loving sister, but above all that… you're a good person."

"Jaune I-"

He gestured with a hand. "The people here deserved better Yang." He kept his face turned away. The silence threatened to return, until he sighed. "A guy like me is lucky to have my partner, my team, and my friends… I'm lucky to have you Yang."

It frustrated her to no end that he seemed to think he wasn't good enough for them, for her. "How can you not be mad at me? Are you going to try and tell me it didn't hurt, not even a little?"

Jaune sighed, finally looking at her. "Maybe I should be mad, maybe I have the right too, and maybe I was wronged." He shrugged his shoulders. "That doesn't matter to me though. In the end it all worked out."

At first she thought he was lying, how could he have just gotten over it so easily. How could have not held any of it against her in the slightest. She had betrayed his trust, his friendship.

"For what it's worth." He went on. "I'm glad you took that bet with Blake." A smile came to his face, and to her shock it appeared genuine. "If it wasn't for that we wouldn't have become friends in the first place."

Yang returned his smile. "I figured out what I'm sorry for." Jaune raised one eyebrow in response. "I'm sorry it took a bet to get us to be friends. I never gave you the chance you deserved… and for that, I am sorry."

He looked like he wanted to argue the point but instead settled for it. "Something else good came out of that bet too."

"Oh," A cheeky grin worked its way onto her face "and what would that be?"

A smug smile grew over his face. "You look really good with that haircut."

The grin fell off her face in an instant. "Y-yeah well, don't get used to it." She punched him in the arm and glared, even as her cheeks grew a little red at the compliment. "Blake had to practically tie me to the chair."

"I thought it was your idea?"

Yang felt her cheeks heat up even more. "That didn't make it easier."

The two stayed up for a little while longer. Enjoying eachothers company and helping to stave off the depressing atmosphere of the place.

Between Jaune and the never ending argument her uncle was having, it had actually turned into a somewhat fun night. At the very least it was interesting.

Yang felt lighter, knowing Jaune didn't secretly hate or resent her for her actions before the dance. It was silly really, she should have known. He was kind and forgiving, slow to anger. He was stronger than her in that regard.

She retired shortly after that. Jaune having to stay up on watch. Unfortunately for him, he'd drawn the short stick and the first watch. Tomorrow held the promise of violence and fights, Yang could sleep softly knowing that.

She had the third shift after all, Ruby would wake her up soon enough. She was trying to take advantage of what sleep she could get.

* * *

**Authors Note: I'm a lot less confident in this chapter. At the very least I wish it could have been better. The dialogue just felt… a little off to me and the descriptions were difficult to come by. Guess we'll see if it can survive the reviewer test. **

**Also, wanted to make a note about a mess up on the previous chapter, I made a mention that I created a Patr eon. At the time I didn't know the site just deletes that word if you put it there. So my ending note probably looked like insanity.**

**Patr eon, if y'all wanna donate great, if not, no sweat. Don't forget to review and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.**

**Sincerely SE **


	17. Chapter 17

**Authors Note: I'm glad to see people seem to be liking the story, and that it's fairly popular. **

**Enjoy the chapter.**

* * *

Jaune and Ruby were gone. That had been the news she had woken up to. Apparently they had wandered off in the middle of the night. Yeah, because that didn't seem sketchy.

She had been up and moving in a matter of seconds, already getting dressed and grabbing Ember Celica. Even with her in a rush she was probably the last one to be ready.

Qrow wanted to rush off and search for Ruby, though it seemed Winter had convinced him it would be better if they waited. She wasn't certain how she felt at them waiting. She was too panicked to think.

"Okay kiddos, we're going with something similar to yesterday." Qrow spoke swiftly. "Break up and search for any tracks you can find. Schnee and I are gonna go a little farther out and see what we can stir up." He turned and nearly left, only stopping at the last second. He looked over his shoulder, his eyes meeting hers. "We'll find them, I promise." and with that, he left.

None of them notices as a crow cawed and flew in the direction Qrow had been running.

It hadn't taken long for them all to start looking. There were plenty of tracks over the area, they hadn't been very subtle the day before. The dirt and gravel had been kicked around wherever they walked.

Tracks were easy to find. The hard thing was finding useful ones. There were simply too many of them. Ten people tended to disturb the area, any sign of where Ruby and Jaune had gone was indistinguishable from their footprints the previous day.

It was frustrating and she felt like she wanted to pull her hair out. Thankfully she knew she wasn't the only one who was concerned.

"What were they thinking!?" Weiss' glare had been cold on the surface, angry even, but if you looked a little lower you could see she was deeply concerned about her partner.

It had been a question she planned on getting an answer, just as soon as they were all safe back at Beacon.

She wasn't sure how he had done it, especially since he hadn't been nearly long enough. Regardless the relief that washed over her when Qrow returned with Ruby beside him had nearly made her cry.

She had been so concerned about them, but it had been for naught. Qrow was awesome and would never have let anything happen.

Yang had practically thrown herself at her sister, wrapping her arms around her and holding her tight. Only pushing her away so she could assess the damage.

She gave Ruby a once over, checking for injury. She was a little red in the face, her eyes open wide as she breathed, clearly a little exhausted but she seemed ok. Yang looked behind them in search of Jaune, planning on doing much the same.

Nobody was there. She scoffed softly, she would have to help him with his cardio when they got back to Beacon as well. He had clearly fallen behind… rather far behind actually she realized as the seconds began to drag on.

It was a daunting realization, one she refused to accept. They wouldn't have left him, surley.

Yang turned to her sister, finally registering the concern on her face.

Ruby's voice was weak. "H-He… He fell."

Yang's eyes widened in horror.

* * *

Jaune winced at the pain he felt as he opened his eyes. He tried to raise a hand to cover his eyes from the light but found he couldn't. Panic set in a moment later as he realised he was tied down to a chair.

This panic was quickly overcome by embarrassment as he remembered pulling Ruby away from the suddenly collapsing roadway only to fall into the hole himself.

_That's… probably the wrong thing to focus on._ He thought to himself. That didn't change the fact.

Ruby probably would have been able to save herself from the fall, him intervening had only guaranteed his capture.

He looked around slowly, trying to guess at where he was. Whatever he was looking for, he didn't find it. Of course the White Fang couldn't have put up a map saying 'you are here'. That would be to easy after all.

He groaned slightly as he felt a spike of pain run through his head. Had he hit it during the fall? That would probably explain why he had been unconscious.

The concussion might also explain why he felt so calm. That or shock.

He heard a couple footsteps come from behind him as he attempted to crane his neck and see.

Something struck the back of his head a moment later, causing his vision to go white for a second.

"Tsk, that looks like it hurts." A voice taunted him from beyond the glare. "I'll be sure to do it again."

Jaune refused to acknowledge who it was that was speaking- in the vain hope that it would make him go away. Sadly he had no such luck.

Torchwick's shiteating grin slowly came into focus.

"Ugh, is that going to be the last thing I see?" He hadn't meant to actually speak out loud, but judging by how the mans grin fell, he had.

Torchwick looked over him at something. "Yeah yeah, laugh it up. Real funny." Jaune felt his cane slam into his arm a moment later.

It took him a moment to work through the pain and actually understand what he had said. There was somebody else in the room? Had he not been able to throw Ruby to safety!?

Roman stepped back and off to the side as a small... girl appeared in front of him? She looked at him with curious eyes, pink and brown eyes that defied all logic. Even then, there was something in them that concerned him.

_Ok, that concussion might be a bit worse than I thought._

"So, what do you think we should do with him?" The question made the small girl grin. The look on her face made Jaune sweat slightly. "Actually, wait just a moment." The small girl pouted slightly. "I wanted to ask you a few questions first, wasn't certain I'd get the chance to before we made out departure. Glad to see that aura of yours woke you up early."

Jaune felt him grip his head and shake it- making the world spin for a moment as pain lanced through his brain.

"Let's start this off simple." He stepped back out in front of him. "Let's start with your name."

Jaune remained silent and raised one eyebrow. Did he really just expect him to answer questions?

Torchwick sighed. "One of two ways kid. My way, or hers." He gestured to his companion. She smiled viciously at the idea, sending a shiver down his spine.

It wasn't a dangerous question, was it? Did it matter if they knew his name or not?

"J-Jaune." Curse his stutter. "Jaune Arc."

The shorter girl frowned slightly when he cooperated.

Torchwick seemed to think for a moment. Trying to place some kind of importance to his name. There wasn't any of course, and yet his face seemed to twist in familiarity.

"You were one of those brats at the docks." He snapped his fingers. "That's where I know you, thanks kid it was killing me."

Jaune felt the cane smash into his arm, causing his aura to flare slightly.

"That's for all the trouble that filthy animal put me through!" Torchwick rolled his shoulders back some, working out some of the stress from beating up a defenceless man. "Now, on to more pressing matters."

Torchwick lifted his chin up with the end of his cane. "How many more of you are there?"

Jaune swallowed with some difficulty. That… that was a more dangerous question. One he knew he couldn't answer… at least not honestly. "Three more on my team." Torchwick didn't look convinced, causing Jaune to wince and try again. "And a huntsman."

"Hm" Again, Jaune couldn't say Torchwick looked very convinced but he hadn't started hitting him yet. So he had that going for him. "Why are you here?"

Another question he didn't plan to answer honestly though a lie didn't come so quickly this time.

Torchwick reared back with his cane and Jaune panicked. "We were sent to clear out Grimm!" He closed his eyes and awaited the pain. When none came, he was quick to elaborate. "They thought it would be good training!"

Jaune slowly cracked open one of his eyes.

"Tsk, figures it was just shitty luck." Had he done it? Had he actually managed to lie to a renowned criminal?

Torchwick lowered his cane and leaned on it slightly. "Though that does raise another question. What are _you_ doing here?"

"I fell down a hole." Jaune wished he had lied on that one. He really did.

Torchwick looked at him a moment before a slow chuckle started, before growing to a loud laugh. His companion, while not as vocal about it, was certainly just as amused as him.

Torchwick withdrew a cigar and lit it in between fits of laughter. "Thats hilarious, holy shit."

Jaune sat through it all with a look of embarrassment on his face. At least it looked like they believed him on everything else at least.

Torchwick's laughter died rather suddenly as he turned to the small girl. "I don't suppose you can think of anything to ask him." A moment of silence. "Don't know what I expected." He turned back to Jaune. "Won't kill you yet, don't need that kind of negativity drawing even more Grimm down on us."

Jaune let loose a heavy sigh.

"Don't get too comfortable though, we'll be taking you with us as collateral."

Jaune's breath hitched at the words. Taking him where?

They left before he could ask however.

He leaned back in the chair, hoping help would come soon. Ruby would have made it back by now and they would be on their way.

He only hoped they made it in time.

* * *

Roman puffed on his cigar, enjoying the sensation as it filled his lungs. It helped to distract him from what was happening.

Things were going down hill rather quick and he had to think. A couple students and one huntsmen would hardly be a problem, at least they shouldn't have been.

They wouldn't have been, if not for the students in particular. He wasn't a fool, he had done his research after the battle at the docks. He knew who Jaune Arc was, and more importantly who was on his team.

For the most part the names had meant nothing to him, save one of course. Pyrrha Nikos was a rather well known name, even more so than his, but he was confident in his ability to fight against her if it had come to that.

Except that Cinder had asked him to look into her. That raised all kinds of red flags. If that brat was here then it meant something bigger was likely going on.

Something Cinder hadn't felt like warning him about.

Roman growled in frustration. Was that something she had done intentionally or had she simply not known?

In truth, he wasn't sure which would have been better. One implied indifference, the other incompetence. Neither of which were good when somebody's life was on the line, namely his and Neo's.

"This deal just keeps getting worse, doesn't it?" He looked down into those pink and brown eyes. "I think it's time we resort to something rather desperate."

Neo raised an eyebrow in confusion as Roman pulled out his scroll. It only took her a moment to figure out who he was messaging and she seemed just about as reluctant as he was.

He wrote out a rough summary of what had happened and how if things went poorly he wouldn't be able to fulfill his role. When he finished it his thumb hovered over the send button and instead closed the app- saving the message as a draft- before stowing the device away.

Neo looked confused but trusted his judgment.

"Don't worry Neo, I've got a plan." If it was going to work though, he would need to get the train ready to move now. They weren't ready but it would have to do.

This was his last gambit and if he played it just right, they might yet come out on top.

* * *

It hadn't taken them long to find where Jaune had fallen. Sadly he hadn't fallen directly into their main base and instead it seemed that he had stumbled across a patrol or something. The tricky part had been trying to follow the tracks the White Fang had left after capturing him.

It was a frustratingly slow pace as they made their way after Jaune. More than once the group had been forced to go around some Grimm to avoid the attention it would bring. Forcing them to take even longer.

Yang knew she wasn't the only one annoyed at their pace. The look on Pyrrha's face was frighteningly neutral, almost enough to make Yang feel bad for the first White Fang they came across.

Almost.

She was willing to admit to being surprised when they finally did find the terrorists and they were not trying to be the least bit subtle.

It had taken Qrow a couple attempts to calm them down and stop them from rushing in straight away.

It hadn't been what she wanted to hear, it hadn't been what any of them wanted to hear, but that didn't make it not a good point.

Yang peered out over the edge of the building they were sat on. A small ruin that had a good view over the train yard and the people running about.

They seemed to be in a rush, for what Yang could only imagine. It was probably something bad, judging by the sheer amount of dust and weapons they seemed to be moving around.

At the moment they were moving things out of a warehouse and putting it next to the train, clearly planning to move out.

Whatever they were going to do, it would have to be soon. Thankfully they had a plan. Or rather, Ruby had a plan.

* * *

**Authors Note: Okay, so… y'all might hate me for the slow build to fights… not a lot I can do about that its just the way things work out. Trust me though shit's gonna be active for the next couple chapters. YOU SHALL HAVE YOUR BLOOD… *cough* anyways.**

**We're approaching 50 thousand views, which is amazing! Over 200 favorites and 300 follows, I'm more than a little proud I won't lie. To think this all started because my friend and I swapped favorite ships... gonna have to do more writers games I suppose. **

**Wanna take the chance to thank my editor who makes this all possible. Wouldn't be able to have a story like this without him. You the man. **

**Don't forget to review and let me know what you think. There is very little I love more than reading a really honest review, good or bad. Lets me improve and make adjustments where needed.**

**Sincerely SE**


	18. Chapter 18

**Authors Note: Not all that confident on this chapter… I'll know if its good or not by the response I suppose. **

* * *

Yang waited as patiently as she could, struggling to hold back her urge to simply run in and find Jaune. There was no guarantee Jaune was here at the moment, even if they knew he was they didn't know where exactly he was. It would have been all too easy for a White Fang thug to hold a knife to an unconscious Jaunes throat.

Her blood ran cold at the thought as she bit her lip. She would have drawn blood were it not for her aura kicking in.

She sat in a small alleyway off to the side of the train yard. It wasn't exactly a secret but the terrorists seemed to be both in a hurry and woefully incompitent. It would have been rather funny were it not for the threat of death if they failed.

The plan was simple and surprisingly well thought out for one of Ruby's but it would work.

Yang looked out across the way to a rooftop where she could just make out the red of Ruby's cape.

One shot, a single round from Ruby's sniper was the signal they waited for. All they were waiting for was Torchwick to expose himself. They had spotted him after a few minutes of scouting but they hadn't been in any position to take advantage of it.

Now they sat in silence, hoping the sound of their breathing didn't alert the guards.

The second he showed his face Pyrrha, Winter, and Qrow would strike, hopefully catching him off guard. Ruby would fire a shot to let the rest of them know when that part of the plan fell into place.

For now, they would wait. Yang felt her hand shake, her breathing coming out uneven. It had been a long time since she had felt this nervous. She was confident in the plan, her team, team JNPR and even Qrow, but she still felt uneasy.

Somewhere in one of those buildings Jaune was being held prisoner. IF they didn't act quick enough, or if they couldn't find him they might… Yang refused to accept that idea.

They were going to find him. _She_ would find him. They would kick the bad guys ass and return to Beacon as heroes. Then she would get her date with Jaune even if she had to hold him hostage to do it.

He had a lot to make up for with the amount of worry he had caused her. She would tease him and poke fun at how he had gotten captured and how she would be his knight in shining armour. She would be able to do all these things because he would be fine.

She caught a glimpse of orange hair and she grit her teeth. This was it.

A few moments of silence filled the area in which she could imagine everyone holding their breath.

There were a few shouts and startled yelps, before a shot rang out through the area forcing life to a pause.

Blake had taken a moment to wait, a split second where she thought about her actions. Yang had already flew out of the alley way with a howl, fist digging into the gut of one terrorist before tossing him into another.

Yang's yell had been more akin to a scream, stunning those in the immediate area to silence. "Where's Jaune!" When no immediate answers came she shoved her fist into the nearest face.

Thankfully there were plenty of chances for answers.

* * *

Roman cursed softly as panic fell on the camp. True to form the White Fang were useless, though he hadn't really expected anything different.

"You are under arrest." He rolled his eyes at the woman who held her sabre up towards his throat.

"I hope your plan didn't call for em to come quietly." He turned his head ever so slightly, looking _behind_ the two hunters standing before him.

Neither of them looked initially, clearly not trusting it to be anything more than a trick. Their hesitation gave Neo all the time she needed to close the distance.

By the time the old guy turned she was already on top of him. Perhaps it spoke to his ability as a hunter or perhaps his luck but Neo's strike was batted to the side and she slid on something.

She flew past him, flipping in the air to land on her feet, right by Roman's side. It hadn't been the devastating attack he had hoped it would be, but it had at the very least given Neo the chance to get to him. Together they would be able to find a way out of it, or fight if they had to.

Roman scanned the area subtly looking for anything he could use to his advantage. smirked at what he saw.

"You know what I love about terrorists Neo?" The smaller girl tilted her head slightly but otherwise kept her eyes on the hunters. "They don't have any sense of self preservation."

"Argh!" One of the masked thugs lunged clumsily at the woman, forcing her to move her blade to counter. Which she did with ease, slicing down and removing the man from the fight in an instant.

She had only managed to turn partially back to them before Neo had fallen upon her. Had it not been for the other hunter it might have been over then and there, sadly the guy had been able to deal with the three or so idiots who had rushed him.

Steel met steel as he caught Neo's blade on his own. Forcing her blade down with a flick of his own. "I'll deal with the small one, you focus on Torchwick."

Roman couldn't see Neo's face but he could feel her smile despite that fact. The vicious look had forced many to back down before, though it didn't seem to work this time.

The woman hesitated, seemingly unsure of whether they should split up, a fact he was more than willing to take advantage of. He held Melodic Cudgel up, pointing it at her before taking his shot.

A cloud of dust was thrown up and for a moment he dared to hope that would be the end of her. The cloud warped outward slightly and he sighed. No such luck.

Neo had taken the opportunity he had granted to go after her own target, no doubt enjoying her time. Roman not so much.

He ducked under as her sabre cut down, blocking another strike with his cane before finally being forced back under another strike.

He wasn't a push over or weakling but he also wasn't an idiot. He knew when he was out matched and this was one of those times.

He bent back slightly, just missing a cut aimed at his throat, before another came for his chest. The blade made contact with his forearm and he could feel his aura drop. Again he was forced back.

That frustrating exchange continued to happen as they were driven away from Neo and the other guy.

Roman bent back slightly, reaching towards the ground as he tried to dodge under her strike. The gravel he threw at her eyes didn't do any damage to her aura but it served as a momentary distraction.

It would be enough time for him to get a couple hits off. Or it should have been, were it not for the white glyph that appeared below him, sending him flying backwards.

Ad he rolled to a stop only one thought ran through his mind. Maybe he should have taken the other guy.

* * *

Winter rubbed the gravel from her eyes, attempting to see her opponent through her blurred vision. There was a dull burn there like she hadn't managed to remove it all, her eyes naturally wanting to force themselves shut. She forced them open in time to see him charge.

She held her sabre up, blocking the cane before it could strike her side. A fist rocketed towards her face a second later, she ducked under it but was forced back slightly.

Torchwick attempted to follow up and press his advantage by swiping at her legs. Winter glared at him as she flipped up above his cane to avoid the attack.

He swept low, attempting to catch her as she landed, again forcing her to pull back. This time however she didn't just move out of the way of his attack, instead she forced him back at the same time. Giving her the distance and time needed to use her semblance.

She watched as his look changed from one of arrogance to that of a man who realised they had made a mistake. The ground under her feet was covered in a large glyphs, the familiar white doves materialized seemingly out of nowhere.

To Torchwick's credit he did try and close the distance but he was far to slow. Winter breathe din as she prepared to release her summons, only for her concentration to be broken by gun fire.

Where it had come from, she could not say but the suddenness of it had been all it took for her to slip and the glyph to fail. Torchwick launched at her with a new desperation, one that proved behind his arrogance and ego was a _cunning_ criminal. He wouldn't let her fall back and attempt to use her semblance again.

Winter ducked under another attack as she assessed her options. Torchwick was probably physically stronger but he had little other advantage. She was assuredly faster and more skilled.

The only thing that kept the fight from being over in a second were his underhanded tactics. He didn't fight like a hunter and that gave him some semblance of advantage if only in the fact she couldn't predict his attacks.

She swung low forcing him back slightly as he raised his cane and aimed it at the ground beneath her feet. A reticle popped up at the end of the cane and a shot struck the pavement, kicking dust and rock up into her face.

Winter held a hand over her eyes just long enough to stop a repeat of earlier before continuing the fight. She heard the strike long before she saw it, though it should have been obvious he would take that chance to attack.

The strike had been intended for her right arm, likely in the hopes she would drop her blade and be left undefended. She moved her sword to block, twisting her wrist in an awkward angle, the force of the strike might have broken it were it not for her aura.

The dirty tricks he pulled were not overly original. Despite that, they were still quite effective. He had attempted to back her into a container of dust, effectively putting a bomb behind her that he could detonate with the pull of a trigger.

She crouched down slightly as a glyph sparked to life under her feet, sending her flying off to the side as the attack struck. The container exploded in a fireball. She could feel the heat on her back and noticed several pieces of metal embed themselves in the surrounding area.

Luckily none had hit her, she doubted any would have hit Torchwick either. The criminal seemed to have been somewhat affected by the blast though, coughing slightly and not moving to attack her.

Winter knelt down, slowing her breathing and forcing a sense of calm over herself. She felt her semblance surge and the last of her dust burn as she tried to summon once more.

A slowly growing form rose from the ground. It was perhaps more dust than she should have used, draining what she had left and putting it into one attack was a risky move but it would pay off.

She had the speed and skill on Torchwick but his aura was still powerful, she hadn't been able to dish out enough damage so far and it was difficult to say how long it would take her to win.

Every second this fight went on was a second that things could go wrong. Torchwick was cunning and if she couldn't remove him quickly he would find some way to escape.

The beowulf rose from the glyph and began to take form. A thunderous sound shook the ground and Winter turned. The container that had explored earlier had started a fire, one that had clearly spread to something larger.

Winter's eyes widened as she threw herself to the side, nearly missing the scrap metal that flew past her. It took her a moment to compose herself as she stood, turning to her summons. Only to see it fading away as the scrap metal that had lodged into it fell to the ground.

It was bad luck. Torchwick finally seemed to be able to breath again, moving towards her with a smug smile on his face. As if he had planned for the chain reaction.

Winter berated herself for not thinking he had planned it. Perhaps he hadn't expected it to remove her summons but he was no foul, he knew what sat behind the container he shot at.

She had made the mistake of allowing him to control the flow of combat, no more. She was the better fighter, that had been proven, now she needed to show she was the smarter one.

Her eyes flicked to the side, she needed to corner him. Force him out in the open where he couldn't use things like containers full of dust as distractions.

Her eyes narrowed as she took in her surroundings, finding exactly what she needed.

She would have smiled had it not been so unprofessional. Torchwick had no idea what was coming.

* * *

**Authors Note: It was a really hard decision to end the chapter here or to put the whole fight but I decided to do this… guess we'll see how that goes.**

**Time for the real reason everyone is here though, my end of chapter fireside talks. I am busy, like holy shit that's a lot of shit busy. I've said it before but I'll remind y'all just in case, I am a Soldier in the United States Army. That being said within the next month I have to study for and attend a Soldier of the Quarter board, take a Physical Fitness test, do an 18.6 mile ruck in four and a half hours, do a 12 mile ruck in four hours, run an obstacle course, go to the gun range to qualify with my weapon, and sit in on a promotion board. **

**Now… that might not sound too bad, until you factor in that most of that shit lands in the same two weeks. Oh and on top of all of that I have my day to day job and have to be trained how to do some new stuff for said job… Show me for wanting to be high speed. **

**All of this is a long winded excuse for why I might miss an upload, I shouldn't, but just in case you have been warned. I am ahead a couple chapters more than I planned to be so if I need to I can upload ahead of schedule. Just given yall some insight into my daily life these days. **

**Hope you all enjoyed the story and I encourage you to review. Positive or negative they always make my day. **

**Sincerely SE**


	19. Chapter 19

**Authors Note: For once I'll avoid the long winded dialogue.**

* * *

Roman gasped as the woman charged him, he had expected her to need a moment after the explosion he had just unleashed. He growled as she continued to press.

Normally hunters caught off guard by his tricks, meaning he was able to bridge the skill gap at least some. Cheating leveled any playing field after all but sadly this woman seemed prepared for them. Each one serving only to slow her down or halt her advance temporarily.

It was never enough to turn the battle. That wasn't his plan however.

Another attack came at him and he stepped to the side before once again allowing her to force him back.

The woman seemed to radiate hatred, though whether that was due to his refusal to flat out fight or just how she was, Roman couldn't say. He hadn't landed anything more than small attacks, nothing to really dent her aura or remove her from the fight, but each had been paid for in kind.

She clearly thought she was in control of the fight as she corraled him onto a small broken walkway that left little room for escape. The walkway jutted out over the train, while it no doubt originally allowed people to walk to the other side it had broken long ago, now ending abruptly in a fall.

Who ever had control of the fight would be able to force the other to surrender by the end of it or be forced off the end. The fall wouldn't do too much damage but it would give whoever stood on the walkway after a chance to launch an attack.

She sliced towards his chest clearly expecting him to dodge out of the way so she could follow up. A grin slowly appeared on his face as he trapped the blade under his arm.

His aura flared as she attempted to withdraw it, panic set in as she realized the danger of the action if she failed. She pulled and Roman's aura held strong. With a twist and another jerk he pulled her towards him.

She did something to the hilt before withdrawing a smaller blade that she launched towards his eye. His aura flared and he let out a cry, pushing off her with his free hand.

The sword slipped free and relief washed over her face, just before Roman planted a foot in her chest. Only then did she realize how the two of them had swapped positions during the melee.

Putting as much force behind the kick as possible he practically launched her off the walkway she had planned to use to her advantage.

She attempted to twist herself mid air but was unable to do so in time before slamming to the ground below. Sadly it wasn't a distance enough to kill a huntress, but it would buy him a few minutes as she tried to get back up to him.

Hopefully time enough for him to come up with an actual plan on how to beat her.

Roman looked over the battle as he made his way back to stable ground. All things considered it was a complete shit show. They had the numbers but well… when those numbers were poorly trained terrorists it meant nothing.

This was no doubt the rest of that blonde idiots team, though judging by the number of fights going on he doubted it was only one.

Roman growled as he tried to think. The White Fang were useless against hunters, or at least useless at doing anything more than slowing them down. They simply didn't have the firepower… or did they?

It hadn't been the original plan but there wasn't much he could do about it anymore. If he didn't take action now the whole grand scheme would fall apart and then Cinder would have his head.

He looked out over the chaos below. It was difficult to spot his target, what with all of the animals wearing the same uniform.

There was a large group of them trying to load the rest of the supplies onto the train. Among them stood one individual seeming to give them orders.

"Perry!" Roman yelled at them, hoping that one of them was the animal that had proven himself slightly less incompetent in comparison to his brethren. When one of them looked up at him he sighed in relief. "Go get the big guns!"

The man seemed to take a minute to think before turning and heading back towards one of the warehouses. Roman smiled as he seemed to be heading in the right direction.

His instincts screamed at him to move a moment later. Ducking down he saw something fly overhead before another figure charged at him.

Melodic Cudgel came up just in time to stop a strike towards his throat. At first he questioned how the woman had been able to get back up so quickly before realization dawned on him. This wasn't the same woman.

Bronze armour flashed in the light, red hair flowing behind her as she cut for his arm. He sighed as the famous Pyrrha Nikos tried to kill him.

Roman clenched his jaw shut for a moment, before speaking with a growl. "How many of you brats do I have to beat up before you get the idea?" The _Invincible Girl_ didn't respond, of course, only pressing her attack in an attempt to keep him off balance.

She wasn't nearly as fast as the other woman however, and the two were perhaps on a more even footing.

He batted her sword aside, attempting to strike at her head only for her to dodge and his strike to miss by a hair. He followed it up with another strike, down towards where she knelt. This time she brought her shield up with unbelievable speed, catching his strike before it could land.

She brought her sword up, pointing it at his chest, intending to drive it through his heart. He stepped back, bringing his hand up to push the point aside. It wasn't enough to cause her to miss completely, the strike grazing his arm.

He grit his teeth at the pain in his hand. He inspected it for a moment. There was no blood thanks to his aura but it hurt nonetheless.

His opponent took the moment as a sign that he was slowing down, deciding to push her apparent advantage. She jumped towards him spinning as she angled her sword to strike. Roman stepped back narrowly avoiding a slit throat.

She landed and drove her blade towards his arm, this time he was able to deflect it to the side with his cane. He followed up by bringing it down on her arm. He hoped the force behind it might have forced her to drop the blade but there was no such luck. She held firm and swung for an overhead strike.

Roman brought his cane up to hold back the sword, only to wince at the force behind it. She may have been slower than the other one but she had more strength behind her strikes for sure.

He angled his cane slightly, forcing the sword to slide down its length as he force the handle towards the brats face. She ducked under the strike into a low crouch, spinning her legs out and throwing him off his feet.

Roman rolled away slightly, nearly dodging a follow up attack that struck where his chest had been a mere moment before.

He hooked the end of his cane around the girls foot, pulling her leg out from under her. She gasped and fell much like he had, she made to move away but Roman grabbed onto her before she could. Instead of trying to stand and attack her however he rolled over on top of her.

Roman put his cane over her neck and pushed down with all his force. Her hands attempted to strike him or reach for her sword but he ignored the pain and focused on pressing down on her windpipe.

She succeeded in moving it up enough that he wasn't strangling the life from her but no more. She may have had some impressive strength but it wasn't enough to counter his own, not from the angle she was forced to push.

One of her hands slipped off the cane, grasping for her shield that sat a few feet away. It was too far for her to grab however. She was no longer able to hold him up with only one hand and her face started to turn blue as her struggles grew weaker.

Something flashed from the side and Roman threw himself off of her to avoid the blade that had flown at him. She grasped her sword with one hand sitting up slowly, hacking and gasping for air as she glared at him. She stood on shaky legs, before reaching her hand out for the shield that sat behind him.

Roman stepped to the side as the slab of metal flew past him at speeds that would have no doubt decapitated him.

"Tch." A smirk worked its way onto his face. "That's a pretty useful semblance." It also explained why he had been unable to land many strikes on her, or how she was able to move her shield into place with such ease.

It was a neat trick, one that he wasn't really sure on how to get around. It took him a moment to come up with a plane. The 'invincible girl' seemed to need the moment as well, if only to try and get her breath back.

In the end he was the one to resume the fight first. Much to the girls suprise. It also seemed like she was a little slower now, though perhaps that was just wishful thinking on his part. She still blocked most of his strikes but more made it through than before. Slowly chipping away at her aura.

She seemed to realise how poorly things had started to turn as she tried to disengage and pull back. No doubt she had some kind of range advantage she wanted to try and take advantage of, Roman refuse to allow it.

It was a more aggressive and sustained style of combat than he was used to. Distant memories of his time back at Beacon slipped through his mind. Memories of fights he hadn't been able to win due to strength, it had taken brains rather than brawn.

He struck down, she tried to slip away but when it became clear she wouldn't be able to move completely she called on her semblance. Roman felt the cane be forced back at him slightly, it nearly broke his arm to push it down at the ground. The reticle popping up as he pulled the trigger at the base of the girls feet.

She cried out as she was thrown back. He saw her aura flare softly blocking any major damage but it gave him a moment. He hadn't been spared the explosion either though, the melee being to close for him to fully retreat. He had been prepared for it, however, unlike the _champion_ before him.

His own aura had taken a hit as well but not nearly as much hopefully. He took the chance to reload his cane, as his opponent struggled back to her feet.

Roman heard a loud crash behind him and felt the ground shake. A smug grin over took his face as realization took hers. He set the cane down, leaning on it slightly more than normal.

"I believe we're done here." Romans smile grew vicious. "My friend here will see you out." He pulled his hat off and bowed slightly as the mech suit charged at the girl.

She rolled to the side barley missing getting squashed. It was no longer his problem.

The Paladin could go ahead and fail against her for all he cared. He had a train to catch. He decided to take the safer route, walking through some of the buildings to avoid any unnecessary interference as he made his way to the main building.

Neo stood nearby the entrance and judging by the scowl on her face her own fight hadn't gone much better. Though she seemed to have lost the man. In the end Roman couldn't find himself to care. He had to try and salvage the situation as best he could.

Pulling out his scroll he walked over to one of the nearby tables. He pulled up a contact simply labeled as _Boss_. He gave her a warning about how things had changed before locking it and setting it down on the table.

Neo raised an eyebrow at him but followed him as he turned and made for the train.

"Don't worry Neo, I know what I'm doing."

* * *

**Authors Notes: Nothing much to say here at the moment.**

**Hope y'all enjoyed and dont forget to review. **

**Sincerely SE **


	20. Chapter 20

**Authors Note: Let's just get this under way, shall we?**

* * *

Yang punched one of the terrorists through the wall before throwing his friend in after him. It had taken a long search but she had finally found the building that they most likely kept Jaune in. She had had to interrogate a couple terrorists but had gotten the information she wanted, or rather Blake had.

Maybe it was a terrorist thing but the only person they talked to was her. Granted it had only ever been after Yang had nearly pummeled them into the ground. It worked in the end however.

Yang followed her partner through the mess of rubble and broken buildings to the one that they were looking for. It wasn't really all that special, still being broken and dirty, but it seemed to have more equipment in it. It didn't take a massive jump in logic to conclude it some kind of importance. That only made it all the more likely Jaune was there.

The silence was a little concerning but she held out hope that the worst hadn't come to pass, refusing to acknowledge the threat and real possibility that she had lost him forever. She searched the building room by room, trying to find any signs of Jaune.

It was a door in the back that heralded results. The simple looking door was reinforced with some metal bars on the outside and was made of a sturdier material then the rest, It was also the only one that had been locked. Not that she would let the hardened steel slow her search.

Yang reared back and kicked it down, seeing the rather empty room behind it. Empty save for one chair and a man tied to it.

See held her breath for a moment in fear, before noticing the rise and fall of his shoulders and the way he craned his neck to try and look behind him.

He was alive. Relief washed over her at that fact alone but it took a moment for her body to finally calm down, allowing her to move. She rushed over to him, his eyes were wide as she untied him from the chair but there was a glint in them that Yang felt she could understand all too well.

Jaune was glad to see them, but there was something else in his eyes. A desperation that she couldn't understand, thankfully he was quick to explain as she uncovered his mouth.

"We have to stop the train!" He looked back towards Blake and the doorway. "I heard them talking, they're going to attack Vale!"

Her relief died in an instant. It seemed they couldn't have a break.

"We need to get on that train." Blake spoke quietly, eyeing both Jaune and her.

Yang let her eyes fall to Jaune. He was bruised and clearly tired and she wanted nothing more than to stay with him, if only to assure that he would be ok.

She turned to him. He smiled at her and nodded. "Go, I'll help out here."

It took Yang a moment to agree, even with the knowledge that Vale was in danger she didn't want to leave him here. Qrow would keep him safe though, not to mention his own team.

Yang cursed but followed Blake out of the building, running as fast as the two could manage. She would have to take some kind of solace in the satisfaction of beating the people who did this to him.

It took a few minutes for them to work their way back to the train tracks. The lack of White Fang was a worrying sign but one she refused to dwell on. They were gonna make it to the train in time because there was no acceptable alternative.

As they rounded the final corner they spotted Weiss and Ruby fighting near the train. Her eyes were drawn to a far more concerning fight off to the side however, where she saw the rest of team Juniper, Qrow and Winter fighting two Paladins.

Yang called out to her sister as they approached. Qrow seemed to notice the commotion as well, breaking off from the Paladin he and Winter had been fighting to see what was going on.

Yang wished it could have been better news.

"They're attacking the city?" He seemed confused by the idea but not overly so. "Fine, let's get on the train and make sure it can-" There was an explosion from one of the Paladins as Nora tried to bring it down, to no success. Qrow looked back to them, struggling to make a choice.

Ruby smiled and nodded. "They'll need your help here." Her eyes gleamed with determination. "We can do this!" Her confidence seemed to make him relax, if only a fraction.

Qrow looked over to the fight and sighed but offered them a small smile. "I'll call for a bullhead to come get us, we'll meet you when you stop the train." He waited for each of us to nod before turning back to the fight at hand.

He was clearly reluctant to go but was willing to put faith in them to come back alive. In truth it was a harrowing experience. She had expected him to force them to stay, or at the very least insist on coming. Did it speak to her ability that he decided to stay? Or only the desperation of the situation here?

Qrows actions made a second of doubt to cross Yangs mind. It was with a small reluctance that she climbed onto the train.

She would have liked to have claimed she was scared for herself, or her sister, and a part of her was. She was afraid Ruby might have signed them on for something more than they could handle, but her faith in her little sister was strong enough to overcome that. Yang would be with her at any rate, meaning if something went wrong she could protect her.

None of that was what worried her though.

Yang looked over to the building they had found Jaune in to see him run out towards his team. Straight towards the Paladins and remaining White Fang. He had his sword and shield once again, moving to help his friends.

It was a crazy idea, that she should have been worried for his safety. By all accounts he was in the safest place, surrounded by his team and two trained hunters. They, on the other hand, were the ones treading into unknown waters against an opponent that was proven to be strong. That didn't even account for the fact they had no idea what was on the train.

None of that registered in her mind however. All she could think of was how she watched him slip away as the train sped into the tunnel. She didn't want that to be the last she ever saw of him. She refused to let that happen.

She'd have to make this quick and get back to Jaune. Yang turned back towards the actual train, cracking her knuckles in anticipation.

She didn't have time for this, she had a man to get back to.

Yang smirked as she leapt up onto the top of the train, landing in a fighting stance. It proved unnecessary, there wasn't any one to challenge them.

It took the rest of them a moment to get up but once they had secured their footing they started to move forward, just as the train car they stood on lurched slightly before decoupling from the rest of the train.

It took a second for what that meant to sink in before the group practically threw themselves onto the next car.

Yang couldn't hold back her nervous chuckle. "Guess they really wanted us gone, huh?" The train car exploded in the distance. "Maybe we should get going?"

Ruby lead the way as they moved to the next car. As their feet touched down however the car they had just left detached, slipped off into the distance and then exploded. Rather than that being the end of it however Yang noticed something emerge from the smoke.

Grimm started to poor from the holes in the tunnel, most of them chasing after the train.

"Uh guys." Yang wasn't the only one to notice however.

"Why would… no." Weiss ran ahead of them to the next car, opening the hatch on the roof to look inside. "They all have bombs!"

"That's a little excessive, isn't it?" Yang struggle to understand the logic behind it. "Why would they do that?" All they did was attract grimm... She knew the answer before Weiss said it but that didn't stop her from hoping she was wrong.

"They intend to bring them to Vale!" Ruby came to the same conclusion the rest of them had, dashing ahead to try and get to the front of the train. They had been in a rush before but only now, with the realization of how bad it was, did they feel the pressure.

Grimm weren't all that deadly to a trained hunter, but to civilians? The panic alone might have been enough to draw in more grimm to attack the walls directly. The death and pain would be felt for years. It was something they couldn't allow to happen.

Yang took a deep breath, forcing her mind to focus on the present. Jaune would be fine back in Mountain Glenn, she needed to focus on the task at hand.

The group began moving along the rooftops of the train, knowing that it would be faster than going below into the cargo cars. Once they crossed the flat beds however it was mostly passenger cars. All linked by doors and walkways.

They had been hesitant to go below, fearing that they might be forced into a trap but it had been a while since any of the cars had detached and exploded. In the end it was a chance they were willing to take.

The first car had been a stressful thing. They had all expected to land in immediate combat but instead found an empty car. They had taken it as a stroke of luck, one they hadn't expected to last, and moved to the next car. Again, it was empty.

That had been the first sign something was up. They hadn't encountered so much as one terrorist on their way through the train.

It could have been that they had stopped them from boarding the train in the first place but that somehow felt wrong. They knew that Torchwick was on the train but it was safe to assume others had boarded with him… and yet they seemed to be alone.

Yang knew she wasn't the only one that found it strange. Weiss was too smart to take it at face value and she could practically feel Blake's paranoia radiating off of her. Besides, say what you will about Ruby as a leader but she knew a trap when she saw one.

Yang kicked open the door, holding up her hands as she moved into the room but again it was empty. She felt her nerves fray and she began to consider simply running through the train, traps be damned.

She would have, had they not already stumbled into it. Yang's instincts screamed at her through her anger and she dodged out of the way. The blade that came for her throat missed by an inch and would have hit her hair had it been its normal length.

The attacker made to follow up but was stopped by Blake who had already closed the distance. Had it not been for her own blade Yang may have been taken from the fight before it could start.

The person who had attacked her ducked under Blakes strike, flipping backwards and out of range. No body pursued, instead making sure Yang could regain her bearings. It took a moment for her to strangle her immediate response to attack but she managed to hold back. Taking the chance to get a look at their opponent.

To call her short would have been an understatement, Weiss wasn't even that that with the mixed pink and brown hair and she didn't cast a very interesting figure.

The smile she wore was far different, however, calling it vicious felt like a disservice. Her eyes were the only thing that hinted at what the short girl was thinking and Yang felt uneasy looking into them.

She didn't attack however, instead she simply watched. It took Yang a moment to realise why, there was no reason for her to attack. All she had to do was stall them long enough for the train to get to Vale. Her smile said she knew that too.

She couldn't hope to beat them four on one, but again she didn't have to. Her job was to stall them all… but if one of them stalled her while the other two ran ahead…

Yang leaned back slightly, getting the attention of her team, and tried to keep her voice low enough to not be heard while still keeping her eyes on the short girl. For one the noise of the train being useful.

"I'll keep her busy, the rest of you go ahead." They all looked hesitant but when Ruby made to argue Yang forced her point. "We need to stop the train, we don't have time for this. I'm a big girl, I can take care of myself."

"No." The word was quiet, barely audible over the sound of the train. Yang knew Ruby would disagree but she knew she could handle this. She made to speak back but her sister beat her to it. "Yang, I have a bad feeling about her."

Yang snapped her jaw shut and looked back towards the girl to try and see whatever it was that worried her sister. In the end she couldn't identify it exactly but there was a certain… something in the air.

"I'll handle it." She turned back towards the group slightly, noticing Blake had been the one to speak as she steped forward.

"Don't be crazy." Weiss attempted to reason with them. "We can't just lea-"

"If the fight is going poorly I can escape." Blake spoke softly but kept her eyes on the smaller girl. "I know how to handle this, none of you do."

Yang and Wiess looked to Ruby. "... if she's to much you'll come to us, right?"

Blake nodded and lowered herself, the rest of their team doing the same. The girl seemed to not have a care in the world, though she did slip one foot back slightly to brace herself. Her smug attitude only serving to go so far against so many opponents.

Yang was the first to move, sliding right while Ruby and Weiss went left. The girl stepped back and angled her blade up slightly, towards Yang.

Yang saw her prepare to leap before a shot rang out. Forcing her to either block or take the hit. In the end she wasn't left any real choice as she was forced on the defence, the rest of their team slipping by.

Yang spared a glance back towards her partner just as they reached the next car. She didn't seem worried, if anything she looked focused in a way Yang wasn't sure she could have matched. She bit her lip as they closed the door, separating off the two cars.

She hoped it was the right decision.

* * *

**Authors Note: Put down the pitchforks… please…**

**I can not express the kind of week I have been having… it's over now though, and I don't have to do anything like it for a couple more months at least. Now I just have an 18.6 mile ruck and record PT test to worry about… truly I can breathe a sigh of relief. **

**In other news I am trying to find a new story to read and help occupy my time, if you have any you'd like to recommend let me know. **

**Hope yall enjoyed the chapter and I encourage you to review. Always love to read them. **

**Sincerely SE**


	21. Chapter 21

**Authors Note: Hey ho here we go!**

* * *

Yang ducked under the strike towards her head before sending a fist back in retaliation. Her opponent yelped but fell to the ground as the strike hit. While most of the train had been abandoned up to this point it seemed their luck had turned.

She spared half a second to look back at the door, expecting Blake to come through at any point before she was forced to focus on the fight at hand. If one could even call it that.

The half dozen terrorists that had been in the room were now mostly on the ground, or were quickly on their way there.

As the fight finally finished Yang found herself running ahead towards the door. She kicked the door open and moved into the room.

She heard Ruby call out a warning as a sound hit her ears. She felt the wind displayed by the attack, an attack that only missed because she had rolled forward the second she had opened the door.

As her momentum came to a stop Yang turned her head to get a look at her opponent. The man was big and carried a large chainsaw that acted like a sword. He wore a face mask like the rest of the White Fang but his uniform had no sleeves, instead his muscles were exposed for the world to see.

He hadn't turned around to face her yet, instead he had kept his eyes on the two who had yet to enter the train car.

Yang rolled her eyes as she launched forward, planting a fist in his still exposed back. He was thrown forward but managed to bring his own weapon back around and attempt to strike her. He never hit however as a glyph appeared beneath his feet, holding him in place as a sudden blur of rose petals flew by him.

He fell back this time, but was able to block Yang's punch before she could finish him. He forced her to the side before disengaging and getting behind her. He didn't try to attack, instead he fell back further and put some distance between them.

Silence fell over the train car as everybody regained their bearings. In that time, Yang was able to come to the conclusion that this guy had not been ready for so many of them.

He was surprisingly the first one to speak. "I always wanted to kill a Schnee." His words were not the most impressive she had ever heard. It was more than confidence, it was just plain crazy. He couldn't win against three of them, he knew that.

Once again Yang cursed under her breath at the reminder of the time limit they were on. He didn't have to win. She was starting to get frustrated with that fact. They were right and all but it was still annoying.

She looked to Ruby, waiting for her to decide what to do. Her face was twisted in a look somewhere between horror and realization for a moment before a look of acceptance fell over it.

"Yang… go on ahead." She kept her voice low as she spoke. "Weiss and I can handle this and get up to you. Torchwick should be on the other side of that door."

"And he might have who knows how many thugs with him as well." Weiss warned . Yang had to admit she made a point.

"I don't think so." Ruby looked so certain however and it was enough to force the other two to listen. "Why would he hold back now? This is the last place he can really make a stand without having to fight himself."

Yang thought for a moment and nodded at her younger sister before turning to Weiss. She didn't look as convinced but when no counter argument came it was settled.

She would leave the two of them behind much like they had with Blake. Yang took a breath to steady herself, struggling to keep her emotions under control. She hated leaving people behind just as much as she hated being left behind, but she knew they could handle it. She couldn't let her own fears hold them back however, they didn't have the time for that.

Ruby rushed forward, the sheer suddenness of it catching their opponent off guard slightly. He managed to pull his weapon up and deflect her scythe but wasn't able to counter as another glyph appeared in between the two, forcing him back.

Yang took that chance to slip behind Ruby and move to the end of the car. She thought about taking the chance to attack but refused.

They had a plan and it could work. Ruby was strong, so was Weiss, but together there was no doubt in Yang's mind they would win. Despite all their arguing and bickering they worked better together than most other students in their year.

Still, it took sheer force of will to make her go through the door. Leaving her younger sister and teammate to fight alone.

As she entered through the door it was to find an almost empty room, save for a single idividual. Torchwick didn't look concerned but he also didn't look his normal cocky self. If anything he looked frustrated and a little surprised.

"You were supposed to take longer getting here." He leaned on his cane a bit, attempting to seem relaxed. "I'm afraid this train isn't quite ready to stop just ye-"

Yang bit back her reply and instead launched forward at him. He seemed caught off guard by the sudden attack barely managing to step backwards in time to dodge but otherwise left unprepared for her follow up.

Her fist caught his arm, forcing him to dodge backwards yet again. She stepped forward launching a strike towards his chest, he was able to bring his cane up in time to bat her fist aside but her advance still left him on the back foot.

She knocked his cane to the side with ease and attempted to strike at his chest again. A second later she felt her right leg be ripped out from under her and she fell to the ground.

Yang attempted to get back up but Torchwick pulled the hook of his cane free causing her leg to be pushed to the side. He reared back with his cane, attempting to use it as a bat, but she rolled out of the way as it struck the ground.

She pushed herself up into a low squat before Torchwick was once again attacking her. She felt his cane strike her arm and she winced at the pain before feeling something familiar.

Yang felt her eyes flash red as her hair caught flame. Torchwick being pushed back by the sheer force and suddenness of it.

With him on the back foot she pushed forward bringing her knee up into his stomach as she flew at him. He doubled over slightly but grabbed a fist full of her hair and pulled back, forcing her head back.

She brought her fist around vaguely where she knew his face to be, it struck true and her opponent released her hair a moment later.

Yang brought her elbow down on his back, attempting to force him to the ground but was quickly thrown off balance when he practically tackled her to the ground.

She attempted to flip over to avoid landing on her back but was unable to due to him forcing her down. The pain that lanced through her back only lasted a second but succeeded in knocking the breath from her lungs.

She brought her arms up instinctively as he began to claw at her face. Her lungs burned as she struggled for breath. All the meanwhile Torchwick kept her pinned to the ground, attempting to cause as much pain as possible.

He grabbed her hair once more and pulled her head up before swiftly pushing it back down, smashing her head into the cold steel floor.

This wasn't like any fight she had ever fought before. Torchwick didn't use style or technique, his technique was pain. Everything he could do to cause as much pain as possible to make the other person give in.

Yang grunted as he drove his fist under her rib cage.

It was an effective strategy, one she hadn't truly been prepared for. She knew she'd have to do something different than she normally did in order to win.

He attempted to throw her arms to the side and strike at her face, and as he did so she reached up to grab his throat.

She smashed his face into the ground next to her, before rolling over onto him. She made sure to keep a tight grip around his throat as she did so.

He clawed at her hands, causing her to wince slightly but otherwise her aura held. When that didn't work he went for her own throat, but she had the advantage now and she drove her free hand into his stomach.

His scrambling grew weaker as he slowly began to fall unconscious. A few more seconds and she would be able to let go. As much as she hated him for what he had done to Jaune she didn't want to kill him.

Torchwicks hand fell to his side while the other tried to desperately pry her grip from his throat. A second later he had something in his palm before crushing it into a fine dust and throwing it in her eyes.

Yang instinctively closed her eyes, she cursed herself even before the fist to her face followed by a blow to her ribs. It wasn't a strong strike but it succeeded in forcing the breath from her once again.

She managed to force her eyes open just in time to see the cane smash into her nose. Dazed and out of breath she instinctively loosened her grip and he threw her off of him.

Neither of them moved for a moment as both struggled to regain their breath. Yang forced herself to sit up and onto her feet.

Torchwick coughed but made no move to get up. She forced her way over to him on shaky legs, feeling her strength come back to her along with her breath.

Torchwick attempted to sit up, before Yang planted a foot in his chest and kicked him back down "Had enough?"

He didn't say anything for a moment, instead he simply sat there wheezing and attempting to breath. "Fine." He held his hands up in surrender. "You win."

It took a moment for the words to process in her mind.

He had… given up?

Just like that?

Yang kept her arms up, expecting an attack but none came. The engine car felt strangely quiet for a moment as her semblance finally fully subsided.

A second later the door behind her flew open and she felt her blood freeze. There she was caught between an known crook, one who could probably still at least put up a bit of a fight, and some unknown.

In the end she turned part way, looking over her shoulder at whoever had just entered, before breathing a sigh of relief.

The rest of her team looked at her with a mixed look of shook and pride. Ruby's face was lit up brighter than she had ever seen it.

Yang turned back to Torchwick with a grin on her face. They had won, now all they had to do was stop the train and it would be over. She looked over to the console where the brake would likely be, only to have her eye's be drawn to the main window.

She could practically feel Torchwick's smugness radiate off of him as her face fell to a look of horror.

The tracks ended only a few hundred feet ahead of them. Yang heard a yell from behind before she was dragged backwards by someone, a large ice dome forming around them.

The next thing she knew her world went white.

* * *

**Authors Note: And with this we approach the end of the Mountain Glenn arc, still got a bit left though. I am a little concerned that I may have dragged it on too long and thus ruined some of the pacing but I leave that up for the reader to decide. **

**In real life news this coming week might be a hectic one, depending on how busy I actually end up being. I have to attend some CLS classes and to my understanding those will take all day. I should still have time to write but there is a chance that next week might not get a chapter. I'm gonna try but I make no promises.**

**I currently have a poll up on my pat reon to help decide what comes after A Simple Bet Between Friends, we aren't near the end by any means but I like to plan ahead. I have a couple ideas but I want to know what the audience thinks. **

**You don't have to be a patron to vote, and it really would help me out.**

**I encourage you to review, as always, and hope you have enjoyed the chapter.**

**SIncerely SE **


	22. Chapter 22

**Authors Note: Enjoy and don't forget to review to let me know what you think. **

* * *

Yang felt the world come into focus long before she opened her eyes. Her body was sore and she could feel that her aura was starting to get low, but it was still there and she took what relief she could from that.

It took monumental effort for her to open her eyes, the light blinding her and making it difficult to keep them open. A few seconds passed and the pain lessened some as she pushed through it.

It took a moment longer for her to work up the strength to stand, let alone walk. Instead she settled for simply trying to figure out where she was. It didn't take long to remember the train or the exact reason she was so sore.

She looked around slowly in an attempt to find the rest of her team. She thought she could see Blake moving towards Weiss but it was difficult to say. Her eyes fell to a figure in red rushing over to them both and she could feel the relief wash over her.

Ruby was ok, her team was ok. They had managed to survive a train crash on top of everything else that had happened to them. She wanted to laugh or cry, it was difficult to say which, and it was only at that moment did she realize how exhausted she was.

The last couple days had been unbelievably stressful but now they were safe. Her good mood was interrupted by a howl from behind her. Yang turned around to see the rather large hole and not too far into the darkness she could see red eyes growing ever closer.

They hadn't been able to stop the train before getting to Vale. Only now did that realization fully sink in. Grimm were going to pour into the city and all that stood between a tide of darkness and unprepared civilians were the four of them.

Yang stepped forward towards the breach, bringing her arms up with more difficulty than she would have liked. Her muscles ached and she could feel the burning in them, but she could also hear the faint sound of yelling and screams in the not so far distance. There were still people that needed help in the immediate area and those people would never get that help if the Grimm came flooding in.

The first few Grimm came through individually. A beowulf or two were nothing to be worried about and she was able to deal with them easily. They were the faster ones though and only served as a sign of what was to come.

Before long it was an Ursa, again nothing too difficult. A semblance powered punch to the underside of it's head had it collapsing to the ground. Then another came through and Yang moved quickly to try and stop it from getting by her. It never seemed to notice her though, far too distracted by the sheer amount of negativity in the surrounding area. It didn't put up any kind of fight as she blasted it with a shot from Ember Celica. The force from the shots made her wince slightly as she was pushed back.

She looked around to see her team doing much the same she was to any Grimm that found their way through a different hole. Each one seemed about as tired as her and she could see the fatigue on their faces, but they fought on and she did the same.

Yang felt her breaths leave uneven as she struggled to continue. Her legs felt weak and it took monumental effort to stay standing. Just as she thought she might collapse more Grimm appeared. Two more beowolves and each of them attempted to run past her and in the direction of civilians.

The first didn't make it too far past the hole before being blasted back and finished off by a follow up to the head. When she turned to take out the second one however she found that she had finally run out of ammo. She threw herself in it's direction, stumbling at first before being able to catch herself and continue. It was distracted like the rest and didn't see, to notice her.

Just as she approached it however, it suddenly turned towards her and swung. It was strange for a beowulf to act so suddenly but Yang couldn't deny its effect as she was thrown back. She felt her arm throb as her aura desperately tried to hold together. She fell to a knee for a moment and the beowulf used that opportunity to advance on her.

A second later Yang was flying upwards into its chest, breaking some of the white bone on the surface and no doubt some below it. The monster tried to swipe at her but had its claw was caught by something metal and forced back. She thought she heard a yell but everything began to feel muted to her ears.

Yang stumbled forward as the weight of the beowulf was no longer serving to keep her up right. She felt a pair of hands catch her a moment later and she looked up into a pair of dark blue eyes. Blonde hair was stuck to his brow due to sweat and he breathed heavily but he was very much alive.

Jaune Arc had saved her. It took a moment for her brain to catch the fact of who was currently holding her up. It took a moment more for her to be able to put words to her confusion.

"You were still in-" he cut her off before she could continue.

"Miss Schnee called in a bullhead to be on standby before you all came after me, it arrived just as we finished off the Paladins." He smiled slightly and elaborated. "They let Beacon know what was happening on the way here and they sent help too."

Yang broke eye contact with him to look around and true to his word help had finally arrived. She could see Winter and Qrow holding the largest breach where most of the Grimm were coming from and she could see that the rest of Jaune's team had replaced her own.

Off in the distance she could see soldiers from Atlas evacuating the civilians.

Her legs finally gave out as she leaned on Jaune for support. He repositioned himself to better hold her up and she felt what strength her body had left spent as she struggled to stay awake.

"I think you've done enough, we can handle it from here." Part of her wanted to fight those words, to refuse to let Jaune fight without her for fear of what might go wrong. "Trust us… trust me."

Yang bit her lip as she looked back to the hole where her uncle fought, they were holding just fine and it looked like they had actually been reinforced with some of the Atlesian robots.

Her voice was weak in her throat and she could feel it burn slightly. "O... okay." Jaune pulled her away from the fight and helped move her away from the battle, and by help she practically meant carry.

Her team met them part way and replaced Jaune. He looked a little reluctant at first but a nod from Ruby seemed to reassure him and he turned back towards the fight. They carried her a little further before setting her down near some paramedics. Blake sat beside her and allowed her to lean up against her for support.

She tried to fight the urge to sleep but it was a losing battle. She was too tired after everything and she slipped into unconsciousness a moment later.

* * *

Yang groaned as she started to wake up. To say her body was sore would be an understatement, she couldn't recall a time since her early days at Signal when she had felt so… weak. It was a struggle to open her eyes, let alone to sit up, and for a moment she thought about going back to sleep. Then her mind finally processed why she was so tired as well as the last thing she could remember.

She forced her eyes open, wincing against the light and pain as her eyes attempted to focus. Everything remained a blur as she forced herself up.

As she did so felt a pair of hands settle on her lower back and help her up some. She was startled by the sudden presence, not having realized she wasn't actually alone in the room.

She blinked a couple times as the world became more distinguishable and she noticed who sat in the chair next to her.

"Don't over exert yourself." Jaune said. "The doctor said you'll need some time for your aura to recharge."

The words rang hollow for a moment as she tried to piece together what he was actually saying. Her mind was foggy and she struggled to stay awake.

"They also said you'll be a little out of it as a side effect of some of the aura boosters they gave you." Jaune laughed softly. "It took a lot to make sure Ruby didn't try and record any of your drug induced murmerings. You can thank me for that later."

There was silence for a moment as Yang looked around the room, trying to piece together where they were, in the end though she didn't recognize it. "Where…" She was surprised by the difficulty it took to speak.

"You're back at Beacon." Jaune looked a little concerned for a moment. "You do rem-" The door burst open a moment later and what fragile peace there had been was shattered.

"You're awake!" There was a blur of red, made all the worse by her vision still being a little out of focus, and suddenly Ruby was wrapped around her. She stood up to glare at Jaune a second after. "How come you didn't tell us!"

Jaune's smile turned in an instant as he stammered out a reply.

Blake and Weiss stepped in a moment later, though neither of them insisted on hugging her. Instead each showed their happiness in their own way.

Weiss made some comment about her sleeping in while Blake simply looked at her, her eyes searching up and down her body.

Ruby turned and said something to Weiss and even though she was still out of it she couldn't help but laugh at the argument that broke out. Blake stepped over to her side while the scene became the room's main focus.

"How do you feel?" Blake's voice was quiet but there was an unusual amount of emotion in it that made Yang want to hug her partner, if she thought for a second that she would allow it.

It took a moment for her to form a response. "I'm fine." Yang knew her partner wouldn't accept the answer, even as she said it. "I'm tired, and sore, and I feel sluggish… and a bit hungry." It became easier to talk as she went, her mind fighting through the effect of the drugs.

Blake looked at her for a moment and made to say something before stopping as the rest of the rooms occupants turned their attention back to them.

"We're glad you're finally awake, even if Weiss won't say it." Said girl blushed slightly and coughed into her hand as Ruby continued. "Do you know when you'll be able to leave?"

Yang was about to say no, she had only woken up a couple minutes ago and so hadn't had a chance to ask but to her surprise Jaune answered for her.

"The doctor said she would have to stay a day or two for observation after waking up, though probably only a day depending on her condition." The room was silent for a moment as everyone looked at Jaune. "What? I wanted to know how bad her injuries were."

Weiss raised an eyebrow. "And the doctor just told you?"

Jaune winced at that and made to speak before the door flung open once more. Yang had expected it to be Nora and the rest of Jaune's team but instead it was a woman with fox-like ears and tail. She recognized her as Beacons resident doctor, she couldn't quite remember her name.

"I assure you Miss Schnee, I with-held any information that might be considered confidential." The doctor looked over to the bed. "Your injuries were not considered life threatening nor should they have any long term effects."

Yang released a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding and most of the people in the room seemed to do the same as the tension was finally dispelled.

"I know it won't be a very popular decision but Miss Xiao-Long needs her rest." True to the doctors words it was a very unpopular opinion.

Weiss' glare was ice cold and while Ruby attempted to do the same hers came off more as a pout. Blake simply stepped closer towards Yang, making her opinion rather clear. To her surprise Jaune was the one to agree.

"She'll still be here when we come back." He looked into her eyes as he said it. "And the more rest she gets now the sooner she can get back on her feet."

The rest of their group didn't seem to like the idea but each slowly conceded the point. Or rather Weiss did and forced Ruby to leave with her. Blake sent a look back as she left smiling slightly as Yang waved back at them.

Jaune was the last to leave and despite his words he too had some difficulty leaving. As the door softly clicked shut, Yang was left alone with the doctor.

"Your friends are concerned but I assure you, there is nothing to worry about." She stepped forward slightly and Yang finally noticed the name tag on her chest. _Tsune._ "A couple more aura boosters, with a little time to rest, and you will be good as new, after that your stay here is merely a formality."

Tsune stepped forward, drawing a rather large needle from a nearby table. Yang wasn't usually afraid of needles but the large size coupled with the strange look on the doctors face made her sweat slightly.

The fact that Tsune's tail seemed to be wagging behind her certainly didn't help.

It would be fine of course, she was a trained medical professional. Beacon would never allow someone who wasn't properly qualified through its doors… would they?

Come to think of it, hadn't the headmaster allowed an ex terrorist into Beacon… and hadn't they failed to notice Jaune lacked training or even aura?

Yang swallowed hard as the needle got closer to her arm. She was just overreacting… surely.

* * *

**Authors Note: Just gonna say it now, I stole Kitsune-chan… FORGIVE ME! She originally belonged to Coeur Al'Aran I believe, or at the very least this version of her does. **

**Had classes all this week and it has actually been pretty nice, most my days ending before they normally would have had I been going to actual work instead of classes. It all went well of course and now I am now CLS certified, more stuff to make me look good when it comes to boards and stuff. Now I just have to be worried about the 18.6 mile ruck march I have tomorrow... thats gonna suck... a lot. **

**Hope y'all once again enjoyed the chapter and I encourage you to review. **

**Sincerely SE**


	23. Chapter 23

**Authors Note: Sorry about this chapter being late, it didn't get to my editor until late last night.**

* * *

Of all the things that Yang thought might come of the Breach, she hadn't expected this. Death by boredom.

They had decided to keep her in the infirmary for two days instead of just the one, stating that it was for observation. Yang doubted that was the only reason as any time Tsune seemed to 'help' her some new injury was discovered. Thankfully she seemed to be too busy with other matters to truly bother the bed-restricted huntress.

The down side was complete and utter boredom. Her team had offered to stay around all day but she had declined, not wanting to have them lose their day trying to keep her company. She found herself regretting that fairly soon after.

It was for that reason that she had been happy when Pyrrha stopped by. It had been a bit awkward at first, the champion not really knowing what to say, but the air had begun to clear up as the two talked back and forth.

"I'll admit, it could have gone better." Yang shrugged her shoulders softly. "But everyone came back okay, and we got Torchwick put behind bars."

Pyrrha smiled softly. "I don't think any mission ending in a train crash and hordes of Grimm descending on Vale can truly be called a success." Yang winced slightly at the thought. "But civilian casualties were low and there were no reported deaths. It's reassuring to know it all ended rather well." The redhead blushed slightly. "Though I can't say my pride survived the mission."

"What do you mean?"

"Torchwick is the first opponent I have lost to in a very long time… it was also the first fight in a long time that actually mattered." Pyrrha smiled but it didn't quite reach her eyes. "He got away because I underestimated him and- why are you laughing?"

True to her words, Yang had started to fight back laughter until it had been pointed out. At which point she stopped trying to hold it back all together. Pyrrha's cheeks turned as red as her hair.

"It's not you, or well it is but not in the way you think." It took Yang a moment to get herself back under control. "You're being too hard on yourself."

"I failed to-" Yang cut her off before she could continue, adopting one of Ruby's best tricks.

"Nope."

Pyrrha stared at her for a moment. "I-Im sorry?"

"Nope."

Again, Pyrrha seemed unsure of what to say. "There's nothing I can say to make it up, I fail-"

"Nope." Yang rolled her eyes. "You don't have anything to feel sorry for."

"But I-"

"Nope." Yang chuckled slightly at Pyrrha's confusion. "Torchwick is a trained hunter, even if he chose to use that skill to break the law instead of to uphold it." Yang didn't have any proof that he was trained but there really wasn't another explanation on how he had been able to avoid capture for so many years. He was just too good to not have some kind of training, be it formal or through experience. "He's defeated countless huntsmen and huntress, not to mention Weiss' sister who is an Atlesian Specialist, and she was still beaten."

Pyrrha didn't seem to agree with her but was smart enough to know Yang couldn;t be swayed on the issue. She made a note to talk to Jaune about it later, she would hate to have Pyrrha beating herself up over something she really shouldn't. As strong as she was, and contrary to her nickname, she wasn't invincible

The room was silent once more and Yang feared her only source of entertainment might leave, thankfully she didn't. Thankfully Pyrrha broke the silence. "Jaune has something he wants to talk to you about, though I think he's trying to work up the nerve for it."

"Oh?" Yang felt heat slowly rise to her face. "Any idea what it might be about?"

"I think I could hazard a guess." Pyrrha said. "But I won't."

The redhead smiled and began laughing at Yang's look of betrayal. "Oh come on, you can't work your way up to something like that and then just leave me hanging." Judging by the look on her face, that was exactly what Pyrrha had planned to do. "That's so not cool…"

Yang crossed her arms over her chest and adopted a scowl that in no way came across as a pout. She would fight anybody who said something different.

It took a moment for Pyrrha to fully get herself back under control, the unusual bout of laughter seeming to stretch on even longer due to Yang's embarrassment. Eventually she did speak however.

"I won't tell you because he's my partner and it wouldn't be right to reveal his secrets, even to another friend." Pyrrha paused for a moment before smiling softly and continuing on. "Besides, I don't know for certain and it wouldn't be fair to either of you to spread rumours."

Yang hated that she made sense. "You didn't have to let me know, at least then the suspense wouldn't be killing me." She released an overly dramatic sigh. "I suppose I shall have to endure it." Pyrrha chuckled before hiding her smile behind a fist. Yang waited for her to recompose herself before continuing. "So has anything interesting happened while I have been so unfairly incarcerated?"

"You mean over the last two days since the Breach?" Pyrrha raised one eyebrow at the question.

"Don't act like crazier things haven't happened in short time frames before."

Pyrrha rolled her eyes but didn't disagree. "It's just been downtime really. Classes aren't set to resume for another three weeks, since most students are still away on missions." She chuckled softly. "I don't think it's normal for one to end so quickly, not to mention so… drastically."

"I don't know, I seem to recall a certain professors' stories always ending with that much flare." Yang smirked. "I'm fairly sure he told one that went fairly close to our own."

"Professor Port's… exploits aside, Beacon didn't really expect us back so soon." Pyrrha explained. "They've mostly just left us to our own devices, though that's not so say they don't check up on us."

"Your sister is planning a trip into Vale to celebrate your recovery." Pyrrha froze for a moment before looking up at her. "I probably wasn't supposed to tell you that."

Yang grinned. "Don't worry, I'll make sure she knows that you ruined the surprise." Pyrrha's face sank some. "She totally won't feel betrayed."

This time Pyrrha went into full blown panic mode. Upsetting Ruby was always a bad thing, if only due to how nice and innocent she was, but if you started to approach the idea she might be hurt or sad or even that she might cry?

People would quickly try to fix the issue before it came to that. Pyrrha was no exception.

"You're joking right… right!?" When Yang didn't respond it looked like Pyrrha might run off to go apologise to Ruby then and there. She stopped however, once she saw Yang's shiteating grin as she struggled to hold back her laughter. She failed a moment later.

Pyrrha sagged in her chair groaning slightly. "That wasn't fair."

Yang fought back her laughter. "Heh, no, it wasn't… still funny though. She won't find out you told me, at least not from me."

Pyrrha looked relieved before switching the conversation to something less worrying.

* * *

Yang bent over slowly, stretching her back and aching muscles for the first time in days. It felt nice to finally be out of bed and even better to not be stuck in that stupid hostpital gown anymore. She looked much better in her normal clothes.

She finished tying her boots and settled her hand on the door, opening it slowly and just enough to peak out of it. When the coast was clear she stepped out and closed the door softly behind her.

She got all of three steps before somebody coughed from behind her. Yang jumped and felt her heart leap out of her chest at the sudden sound as she turned around to see who had spotted her.

Tsune didn't look amused. "Might I ask what you're doing?"

Yang brought a hand up to scratch the back of her head. "Heh heh… would you believe I was just looking for something to eat?" The doctors flat expression forced her to wince.

The doctor looked her up and down for a moment. "You know, it's very possible you leaving without my permission has caused further injury. You may need to stay for further… medical care."

Yang felt herself beginning to sweat. "Don't worry doc, I'm perfectly fine."

Tsune looked like she wanted to continue to toy with her patient but sighed dramatically instead. "I suppose you are free to go then."

The room fell still as Yang processed the words, before practically running to the door as fast as possible. The last thing she wanted was to stick around and find out Tsune was messing with her.

When Yang had made it to relative safety she slowed to a walk. It was already midday, the light from the windows serving to light up the hallways. She slowly made her way back to her team's dorm, though she wasn't in any real rush.

Beacon was quiet at the moment and the peaceful environment wouldn't last for long. She decided to enjoy it while she could. The halls were empty for the most part, a fact that felt strange.

She only made it halfway back to the dorm before that fragile peace was shattered however.

"Traitor!" That was the only warning Yang got before Ruby flew into her wrapping her arms around her and dragging them both to the ground. Her sister hugged her tighter and mumbled something into her back.

Ruby was dragged off her a second later. "Careful you dolt!" Weiss berated her partner. "Your sister was only just released from the infirmary, she might not be fully healed yet."

"Aww, Weiss" Yang couldn't pass up the opportunity. "I knew you cared about me!"

Weiss' deadpan look said otherwise as she released Ruby. "Never mind, you can't possibly make her any worse."

Yang was brought to the ground by a Ruby sized missile once again.

As a last ditch effort, the blonde brawler reached a hand up to her partner. "Blake, help me!" Said partner took one look, before turning to Weiss to ask a question about something Yang didn't catch. "Betrayal!"

"Why didn't you tell us you were allowed to leave?" Ruby said into her side, the only reason Yang was able to decipher it being because she had practice with this exact set up before.

"Simple, I didn't know." She regretted the words the second she noticed Weiss and Blakes heads snap back to the two sisters on the ground.

"You weren't released?!" Weiss' voice was loud enough that Tsune probably could have heard it. Yang decided to blame it all on her, she deserved it after all those needles.

"I was released, just not… entirely when I was supposed to." Yang wilted under the glares from her team. "It's fine though, she knows I'm here and is perfectly okay with it."

Weiss and Blake shared a look with each other before turning back to her, neither of them looked like they fully believed her but decided there was nothing they could do.

Yang dragged herself up off the ground. "I'm fine, doc gave me a clean bill of health. Just some minor cuts and bruises. The only reason I was there for so long was because she wanted to torture me." The group was silent for a moment before Yang sighed. "Can we just put this behind us, please? I just spent way too long cooped up and I need some down time to relax."

Ruby took the chance to offer up her totally secret plan to celebrate their missions 'success'. Yang pretended Pyrrha hadn't told her about it and decided to take her sisters lead.

Yang judged by Blake and Weiss' expressions that they had likely helped set up the plan, which came at no surprise. "Ruby" and "plan" were very rarely used in the same sentence and even then it was usually to say something along the lines of 'never let Ruby make the plan again'.

Ruby seemed excited and even Weiss was smiling.

"I can't wait."

Ruby flew past her, literally; thanks to the use of her semblance, in the direction of their dorms. "We need to let team JNPR know we're going now!"

Yang followed with a small smile on her face.

* * *

**Authors Note: Just a down time chapter, moving back into the softer tone of the story as well as the more relationship based side. I'd love to hear what yall think should happen, review and let me know, kinda need a couple ideas anyways.**

**Sincerely SE**


	24. Chapter 24

**Authors Notes: **

* * *

A quick stop off at their room and the group were off towards Vale. It took a few minutes for the Bullhead to get ready and in that time team JNPR had been able to catch up to them. The flight to Vale itself was short but the walk would be a rather long one.

Ruby had pointedly not told anybody where exactly they were going, though knowing her sister Yang could wager a fair guess. Ruby's idea of fun was drastically different than Yang's or probably even most of Remnant. A weapon shop, maybe an arcade, or maybe a movie.

Despite that Yang was just happy to be out with her friends. Nora occupied their time by filling in team RWBY on what happened at Mountain Glenn after they had left on the train. Ren stepping in to offer corrections nearly every other word.

"The mechs pushed Qrow back and for a moment it looked like they were gonna finish him before suddenly Winter Schnee threw an entire horde of grimm at it!" Nora's voice was full of energy as she spoke.

"They were white doves" Ren said in a deadpan voice. "and there were maybe twenty of them."

Nora ignored him. "The first mech was thrown back under the tide but the second one used the distraction to attack Winter!"

"He tried to split off from us and attack her, but he didn't get far."

"There we were, desperately trying to figure out how to keep it distracted when all of a sudden it freezes in place!" Nora threw her arms out. "And there's just this faint black glow around it as it crumbles to the ground!"

The group was surprised and listened intently to hear what happened next, even if most people could probably take a guess. Even if they didn't know about her semblance, Pyrrha's face was red from embarrassment which gave the 'secret' away.

"Pyrrha froze it in place long enough for us to get some hits to its legs. I think we managed to break something important because it's legs seemed to stop responding."

"A second later and the entire thing exploded in a giant fireball of pink cloud!"

"She shot it with her grenade launcher."

Nora didn't seem to mind her partners constant corrections, if only because the rest of the group found it all the better. Port could really serve to learn a thing or two from them when it came to storytelling.

As they weaved their way through Vale she couldn't help but notice the small signs of everyday life having gone back to normal. Just a couple days ago the entire city had been in lockdown and under a grimm invasion. People hadn't forgotten yet, the streets were a little less crowded than usual and those that did come out had a nervous look about them, but in the end the Breach didn't stop them from living their everyday lives.

The people of Vale would go on with their lives. Yang felt proud of that fact. Proud that her team had been able to help prevent it from getting any worse and saved who knew how many lives. She was proud of her sister, who despite all that had been thrown at her, had remained the ever energetic girl she was.

Yang smiled at the group as she felt somebody nudge her arm. Jaune tried for a smirk but it failed since he didn't really give it a chance.

"You started falling behind." He spoke softly. "Is something wrong?"

Yang looked forward and noticed that he was telling the truth,. She had fallen to the back of their group while she had been thinking.

"Nothings wrong, though I appreciate the concern, lover boy." Yang smirked as his cheeks turned red. "I was just thinking about… well everything, I guess."

"Oh, so nothing important." Jaune smiled and though he still blushed he managed to gain some confidence. "Anything specific?"

"The Breach, my team, my sister." The two of them looked ahead towards the aforementioned girl who was currently holding a conversation with Weiss. "We managed to avert a disaster, thanks to Ruby's leadership." Yang couldn't quite hide the surprise in her voice. "I knew she had it in her, it's just…"

"You didn't expect to see it so soon?"

"Yeah," Yang said. "She's growing up a little faster than I expected… but I couldn't be more proud of her." She looked back towards Jaune. "We also owe a lot of that success to you and your team as well."

This time Jaune's blush was far deeper. "All I did was get captured." He brought a hand up to scratch the back of his neck. "I didn't really need to be there"

Yang scowled at him, cutting him off before he could go on. "I seem to recall telling you to stop putting yourself down, you did amazing."

"Yang… I got captured." Jaune's voice was calm and measured, it didn't fit him at all. "I was a damsel in distress that needed saving. Some hero I am, right?"

He didn't believe her, she wasn't sure why that surprised her so much. Jaune had always had confidence problems, that being one of the main things she had focused on in their training, but he had gotten a lot better. Hadn't he?

"Your team saved us after the crash." Yang felt her cheeks warm up. "You saved me… Did anybody ever thank you for that?"

Jaune seemed caught off guard by the question but answered anyways. "There isn't anything to thank me for, you would have done the same for us."

So that was a no, or at the very least he hadn't accepted their thanks. Yang growled softly under her breath. She would need to find a way to force that self hatred out of him, sadly she didn't know how to go about that.

"Well, I suppose it's my job to thank you then." With lack of a better plan Yang defaulted to what she knew worked, if only temporarily.

"You dont ha-" Yang cut Jaune's response off with a kiss.

Jaune's eyes were closed thankfully, meaning he wouldn't see how red her cheeks must have been. It was different than some of the kisses they had shared in the past, it was far from the most passionnant or heated but there was still a level of familiarity to it.

Yang broke it off after a few seconds, knowing that her point had been proven. She wanted to hold it longer, to pull him in and see what happened, but Vale was far to public a place for something like that and they had places to be.

Instead she winked at him, hoping her blush didn't ruin the image, and spoke with a soft heated voice. "I can't kiss you every time you feel down you know." She turned back towards the group, which had stopped to watch them a few feet ahead.

Yang ignored their looks, and the smirks that grew when they saw her deepening blush. Instead, she continued in the direction they had been going. Everyone else followed a moment later.

* * *

Yang sighed. "Really Ruby?" She knew Ruby was bad at planning things, and she hadn't really had high hopes for any changes there, but she had expected better.

The younger girl clearly didn't see the problem. "What?"

Yang gestured to the building they stood in front of. "An arcade?"

Ruby looked to the building then back to her sister several times before speaking. "What? Arcades are fun…"

Yang sighed again.

Nora practically threw herself at the younger girl, wrapping her arms around her middle. "You. Are. Brilliant!" Ruby tried to pry herself free but made the fatal mistake of allowing Nora to get a hold on her, nobody could save her now… at least until Nora eventually got bored and moved on.

Yang smiled at the display before her attention was drawn by Weiss.

"This isn't the only place we planned on going." The heiress explained. "We knew that our group is large enough to have starkly different interests when it comes to entertainment. That's why we have come to this arcade, its attached to the Vale Central Mall"

Yang nodded along as she explained.

"I, for one, plan on going to a few stores in search of some new clothes to replace the ones that were ruined during the Breach, after which-" Weiss rattled on a list of what sounded more like chores than anything else and Yang pretended to listen. Only once the heiress was done did anybody else speak.

"So that sounds boring, anybody got anything fun planned?" Yang ignored the muffled 'hey' and sharp glare from her friend.

Blake's response was predictable. "I was going to look for a nice book store." She seemed unfazed by Yang's utterly unimpressed look.

"Pyrrha and I were gonna see if any movies were showing." Jaune said. "There was a new Spruce Willis movie that was supposed to come out."

"That could be kinda fun, so long as it isn't a romcom." Yang shrugged. "So long as you don't mind me tagging along."

Jaune replied with a quick "no problem." but the question hadn't really been directed at him.

"I don't mind." Pyrrha looked behind Yang to Nora and Ren, the former of which was still holding Ruby in a vice-like grip. Everybody ignored the small team leaders cries for help. "Besides, it wouldn't be fair to force anybody to go through that… at least not for multiple hours." The redhead smiled and from what Yang could tell it was genuine.

"All right, lead the way." The last thing Yang wanted to do was intrude on Pyrrha's time with Jaune, they were partners after all and it wouldn't have been fair for her to take all of his attention, but as far as she could tell Pyrrha looked okay with it. If anything she looked a little more happy than normal.

There was no champion fighter smiler, or invincible girl, there was simply Pyrrha Nikos.

Yang shook her head, she was probably just over thinking things. She was likely happy to be out with Jaune, regardless of who tagged along.

The movie theater, possibly the largest in Vale, was packed full of people all waiting in lines for tickets or food. The three split up to grab tickets and food. Pyrrha and Yang went after the more important one, that being the food.

While the two waited in line for their overpriced popcorn they chatted quietly. Not about anything specific, just Beacon, some of the other students in their year and what they might be up to on their missions. It was nice and served as more relaxation then the movie probably would.

By the time they had finished getting food and drinks, Jaune had managed to get three tickets for what had been advertised as the best action movie of the year. The three of them would be the judge of that.

* * *

The small group left the dark room, Jaune blinking rapidly to help his eyes readjust to the light.

"That movie was... " Pyrrha struggled to find the word. "Unique."

"Pyrrha, you don't have to be nice about it." Yang said. "That movie sucked… so much."

Jauen couldn't help but agree. "I've seen better stories told by Nora… and Port." The first wasn't really an insult, the bubbly girl being one of the best storytellers Jaune had ever gotten to know, but the latter? That review alone would stop any and all Beacon students from watching that movie.

The redhead held back her laughter as they left the movie theater. They saw the rest of the group meeting up around a small restaurant in the food court and they decided to do the same.

Jaune stopped a few feet behind, grabbing Yang by the shoulder.

"Um, Yang, would you mind… I need to talk with you." She looked confused but nodded. "We'll catch up Pyr." His partner nodded and joined the rest of their friends. Jaune stepped off to the side, out of direct eyesite. Yang followed.

"Is something wrong?" Yang's confusion had turned into a bit of worry, something that made Jaune wince.

"No no… well, sort of, but it isn't your fault!." Jaune answered. "You see, I've been thinking a lot about stuff over the whole mission and how Beacon has gone so far."

Yang nodded when his pause dragged on, helping him to the next point.

"And I… well I've put a lot of thought into things and…" Jaune took a deep breath, forcing the words out with more for than was probably necessary. "Would you like to go to dinner tomorrow?"

Yang seemed surprised for a moment before a smirk hid it away, her smirk slowly turned into a smile, before laughter finally began to slip from her lips.

"That's… not the response I was hoping for." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly before a pair of hands grabbed his collar, pulling him down slightly. He felt the warmth on his lips and his eye's closed on instinct. A moment later they parted.

"You are an idiot, you know that?" Her smile said she didn't mean it… or at least not in a cruel way. She rolled her eyes at his no doubt goofy smile. "Yes Jaune, I would love to go on a date with you."

Jaune could feel his smile grow. "I-I'll send you some of the details later, but tomorrow works for you?"

"Yes it does." Yang siad. "But even if it didn't I would make room for you." There was a moment of silence as her cheeks grew slowly pink, before intensifying into a dark red.

"That… you stole that from the movie." Jaune tried to fight back his laughter, for her sake.

"S-shut up." Yang whispered. "That was… an accident." She released his collar and turned away from him, desperate to hide her face no doubt. Even if he could still see the red on her neck, he pretended to ignore it as the two of them rejoined their friends.

It was only then that the panic began to set in. He had a date to plan…

* * *

**Authors Note: Oh hey, look at that. A romance focused story actually showing some romance... about time.**

**Hope yall enjoyed and as always please review. **

**Sincerely SE**


	25. Chapter 25

**Authors Note: Here we are, actual romance and date style stuff in a story that is meant to be a romance… about time.**

**One of my main concerns when doing the Mountain Glenn arc was that it may have dragged on too long. Let me know your thoughts on that in the reviews. **

**Enjoy in the meantime. **

* * *

He had a date. An actual, real, date. With a real girl. He could already see his mother's reaction, as horrifying as it would be, no doubt she would start planning the wedding by the weekend. He only wished he could feel as excited about the whole thing.

Jaune was happy Yang had said yes, even if it had been practically guaranteed. They each knew how the other felt and had been planning to do something about it for a short time now, but that hadn't stopped his glee the moment she had said yes. A part of him had been worried she would say no or that she had changed her mind.

It was silly of him and he knew that but the concern had been there nonetheless. The moment she said yes had been a relief, sadly that relief hadn't lasted very long once the group had made their way back to Beacon.

Jaune had a date with Yang, only now did he realize he had no plan. It hadn't taken long for his happiness to turn into nervousness. He had a date in less than twenty-four hours and no actual ideas on how to make it anything special. This was going to be Yang and his first date, something that could set the precedence for their entire relationship.

_Ok, might be putting too much pressure on this. Jaune thought. Still, it needs to be special._

His team had noticed his sudden mood switch the second they had reached their dorm, and it hadn't taken long before they asked what was wrong. It had only taken a few minutes for him to explain as they listened quietly as Jaune rambled about his problems.

"You really didn't have anything in mind when you asked her?" Nora had been the first to speak after he had finished.

"I... didn't really think it through." Jaune winced at the thought, as well as the indignant glares form the female half of his team. "I thought maybe we could see a movie but then I realized that wouldn't really be anything different from what we normally do. We agreed to go on a date together once we got back from the mission but... well, it felt wrong to keep waiting to ask her."

"You were afraid she might think you changed your mind?" Ren asked.

"More that she might change hers if I didn't act." Jaune sighed. "I never thought I'd get this far, especially not with somebody like Yang. I... I just want it to be special."

The room was silent for a moment and Jaune feared they might not have had any ideas.

"Jaune, she likes you. More than I think you realize." Pyrrha was the one to break the silence. "She isn't about to change her mind that easily."

Jaune sighed, speaking in a whisper. "That's why I want the date to be special, I don't want her to feel like she made a mistake. Like she regrets saying yes."

"Stop putting yourself down, she wants this just as much, if not more than, you." Pyrrha's face softened. "She won't regret it, even if it goes poorly it will just be something to look back on and laugh at."

"Thanks, Pyr." Jaune said. "I still need ideas though. Regardless of how Yang and I feel about each other it probably wouldn't be a good idea to just go for a walk around the Beacon."

"If you did I'd have to beat you up after Yang got done with you." Nora giggled. "Probably Pyrrha as well."

The redhead rolled her eyes but turned to him, those same eyes taking on a slightly threatening edge. "You will have a plan." Jaune felt himself sweat slightly. "And we're going to help you." Pyrrha turned to Ren and Nora, both giving nods of approval.

Jaune sighed, for once in relief. "Thank you, any ideas you have would help."

"Welllllll, you co-" Nora started but was cut off by Ren.

"You know Yang better than the rest of us, though Pyrrha might have something to add." Ren nodded to her. "She and Yang have become closer since they were able to bridge their... differences."

Jaune's confusion must have been evident as he looked towards his partner. _The two had been arguing? When was that?_

"It's nothing to worry about now, we've made up and are closer than we used to be." Pyrrha looked a little awkward deflecting the question but was quick to turn back to their reason for bringing it up. "However, Ren has a point. We'll help you set it up but if something sounds like it won't be fun for her let us know."

Jaune nodded to show he understood but said nothing, allowing her to go on.

"Now, why don't you tell us what you've been able to come up with so far."

Jaune winced. "I... I already have. The movie was all I could think of."

They stared at him for a moment before letting loose a collective sigh as if to say they had their work cut out for them.

In truth, they probably did. Jaune didn't take any offence to it as they set off to make the best date possible on such short notice.

* * *

Yang took a deep breath, straightening her dress and smoothing out her dress slightly. The white dress she had worn for the dance had originally seemed like a good idea, something that both looked good and was ready since she hadn't really had time to go into town and get one.

Weiss had been quick to shoot that idea down, insisting that she get something new that Jaune hadn't seen already. Ruby had been quick to support the idea until yang brought up the fact she didn't have the money for a new dress, at least not one so suddenly.

That had stopped her younger sister for a time, until Weiss offered to pay and thus launched the younger girl into a flurry of compliments on her partner before turning back to Yang. Even Blake had sided against her, the traitor.

The team had left for Vale the second the Bullheads had been available the next day, and for once nobody had complained about being up so early. Well, nobody besides Yang that was.

The heiress apparently knew a place that specialized in last minute things such as this, though even then she said it might be a little too late for anything perfect. Yang had insisted it wouldn't be necessary but she was out voted three to one.

The place they had gone to wasn't what Yang had been expecting really. It wasn't some large grand clothes store filled with fancily clad attendants and customers needing a bank account larger than some kingdoms to even get through the door. Instead Weiss led them to an out of the way shop a little off the main road.

It might not have been a grand building but it was still clearly built for the upper class, even if it hadn't been fully opened at the time. The second they saw who was at their counter they made an exception to their standard hours, no doubt recognizing the heiress to the SDC as a very important customer.

Over three hours, several discarded dresses, and one reasonably annoyed store clerk later, they had her new dress in hands. Weiss had been true to her word, not that she had ever been put into question, and paid for the whole thing. Yang had offered to pay her back but she had only scoffed at the idea, seeming more insulted than anything else.

At the time she had thought the dress was a good choice. They had decided to stick with the white colour scheme from the dance and went for something that had seemed conservative at the time. The dress went a little lower than the one she wore to the dance but hugged her body tight, helping to show off her curves while not being too revealing.

It seemed like a good idea at the time and usually Yang had no problem with that kind of clothing. Now though, she hated it. She loved the dress, and even the way it felt. She wasn't used to such expensive clothing and the fabric felt soft against her skin but she still felt nervous. She lacked that typical confidence she had grown used to.

For not the first time she wished she still had her longer hair, just so she could hide behind it. It had taken a little more effort than it should have to make her hair look nice. When it came to her hair, she normally knew exactly how she wanted it, this was no normal occasion though.

The last time she had hair so short she had been a child, she didn't have any experience with how to style it when it was so short. She had been forced to admit defeat and call in Blake to help. In the end they had decided simple was best and focused more on getting it to shine than any actual style.

It was a strange feeling for her but she had started to expect it from Jaune. Her team was quick to notice her mood and did what they could to try and calm her down. Yang appreciated it, she really did, but it didn't help nearly as much as she wished it to.

Her eyes kept coming back to the mirror and her own found herself wondering if it were too late to cancel, maybe just say she had become sick. Jaune would no doubt feel a little betrayed or upset. The image of him standing at the door as one of her teammates told him drove such thoughts away however. She was nervous, yes, but she was the one who wanted this originally. She only hoped Jaune felt the same.

Before long there was a soft knock on the door and Yang froze, looking at it with wide eyes. She pulled up her scroll, checking the time. Eight o'clock, right on the dot. The room was silent for a moment, her teammates looking to her to see what she'd do.

"I can send him away if you want." Blake spoke softly, keeping her voice low enough so as to not be heard beyond the door despite the complete silence. "I can make it s-"

"N-no, I'm fine. I just…" Yang took a deep breath before calling out. "I'll be right there." She spared one last glance towards her reflection before moving to the door. She took a deep breath once more and opened the door. "Sorry about that I…" Words froze in her mouth as her brain failed to process the man that stood before her.

Jaune Arc looked good in a real suit, very good. His jacket and pants were a dark black, while the shirt underneath was a crimson red as opposed to the typical white shirt she had expected.

His hair was as untamed as ever but it was brighter than it normally was, a fact that contrasted with the dark theme of his suit.

She finally looked towards his eyes with a blush.

"Y-you look." Jaune stuttered. "You look amazing."

"Yeah, you too." It was weak and Yang wished she could say more but her mouth felt dry and speaking became difficult.

"I um, I got you these." Jaune brought his hand from behind his back, bringing with it a number of flowers.

Yang felt her cheeks burn. "T-thank you." She took the flowers and turned. "Let me just get something to put them in and I'll be good to go." She didn't get two steps before Weiss stopped her.

"I can take care of those for you." The heiress nudged her back towards the door as she lowered her voice to a whisper. "Just try to enjoy yourself."

Yang finally turned and stepped outside, the door softly clicking shut behind her. "So…" The air between them was beyond awkward. "Where to?" It was a weak excuse for conversation but thankfully a genuine one.

Jaune had sent her a message letting her know to dress nice, he had also asked to make sure she had the time to do so. Thankfully she had Weiss to help her. The real question to her was where he had gotten the suit, it was far better than the worn he had worn to the dance.

"First we have to catch the bullhead going towards Vale." Jaune said. "From there… Well, it's a surprise." He looked a little embarrassed as he said it. "That sounded a little cooler in my head."

"I don't know, sounds kinda mysterious to me." Yang smirked despite her own blush. "Girls dig mysterious."

Jaune smiled a bit, even as his blush intensified. "Well, there's only one girl I'm trying to impress."

Yang couldn't say for certain but she knew her blush had to have gone a shade darker than Ruby's cloak. "That… that was a little sappy."

"Heh heh." Jaune laughed nervously. "Sorry."

Despite that fact, Yang didn't resist when he wrapped his arm around hers, nor did she resist when he pulled her in a little closer.

* * *

**Authors Note: Nothing fancy this chapter, just your basic set up and display of their thoughts. I tried to give Yang and Jaune different clothes than we saw in canon and describe it but I'm not sure how well that went. Let me know if I need to do better on the descriptions of their clothes in the future. **

**Hope y'all enjoyed and like always I encourage all reviews, both positive and negative.**

**Sincerely SE**


	26. Chapter 26

**Authors Note: Kicking this off with a Yang… please, I assure you I have a good sense of humour… ok, good might be subjective. **

**Don't forget to review and enjoy the chapter. **

* * *

Yang had expected a nice restaurant, if only because of how dressed up the two of them were, but she still found herself caught off guard when they stood outside the establishment looking in.

"Season 53" Yang read the small sign out loud. "This place… seems a little expensive."

"You'd be surprised." Jaune winced at her glare. "Ok the owner owes my dad a favour for saving his brother a few years ago, he recognised my name when I called and let us jump the line."

"That doesn't really change the price of the food though…" Yang winced and hoped he didn't think her shallow. She was more than willing to pay for her food but she wasn't sure if she would be able to. She regretted not bringing more lien, not that she had much more to bring in the first place.

"Oh don't worry about it, my treat." Jaune's easy smile said it didn't bother him and Yang allowed it. He had probably taken a look at the menu beforehand and knew it wouldn't be too bad. Still, Yang made a note to not get anything too expensive.

There was no ring of a bell or immediate greetings when they entered the door and they were made to wait in a short line to be led to their seat. It wasn't a long wait, though the time was enough for Yang to get a look at the other people inside.

She was hesitant to call them customers due to how well dressed they all were. They seemed deserving of another title all together, one that Weiss would probably have known but Yang was utterly lost for.

Everyone was dressed up in fine clothes, something that might have been expected, but these all appeared of a far higher quality than anything she had. Except the dress that she was currently wearing, courtesy of Weiss. She made a mental note to thank her for helping, as well as to come up with a financial plan to pay her back. It would likely take a couple instalments.

The waiter came back and got Jaune's name, checking it against a list, before leading them further into the restaurant. As they were taken towards the back however Yang couldn't help but notice the looks and glares from the other patrons.

A few men noticed her and made sure to trace their eyes over her, several of the women looking on with jealousy or anger as if it were her fault. Most were older, likely married, couples. Though a few tables were composed of groups talking amongst themselves.

A table full of men in expensive looking suits watched her as she walked by, or rather watched a part of her. Yang grit her teeth and tried to not focus on their eyes digging into her back. Jaune wrapped an arm around her and the lustful looks at her turned to glares at Jaune.

She wasn't sure if it was intentional or not, Jaune not seeming to notice, but either way it was _oh so satisfying_ to watch their face's turn sour.

The table they were led to was somewhat out of the way, a fact Yang was thankful for, but as also next to a rather large window that gave a view of a garden area that seemed to surround the restaurant. It was a surprisingly diverse garden with a myriad of colours and strange looking flowers.

Small butterflies Yang had never seen before flew by the window, landing on the branch of a small tree.

It was beautiful and no doubt expensive to maintain. As the waiter set the menus down she opened it slowly, knowing that the prices would no doubt be inflated due to the view alone.

Yang felt the blood rush from her face as she saw the list. Something that sounded similar to a steak was easily double the price she would have seen elsewhere, something like fish was even worse. Hell, even the drinks were probably pricier than any club or bar she had ever been to, and these ones didn't even contain alcohol in them. She didn't dare bring herself to look at the desserts.

"Is… something wrong?" Jaune looked concerned for a moment but it didn't seem to be the prices.

"N-no, I'm just… trying to decide what to get." That was another problem. Some of the food she was familiar with, at least in part, but most of it had strange names and descriptions that she could only really see the ingredients for.

"Heh heh, yeah." Jaune chuckled nervously. "I can't read most of these." Yang's relief must have been evident. "Judging by your expression, you can't either?"

"It all sounds like something Weiss would eat." Yang replied.

"I didn't really get a look at the menu before setting everything up." Jaune set the menu down. "I'll probably just ask the waiter." He turned in his sea, looking for the waiter.

Yang's panic began to grow as the wiater got closer however. Jaune said he hadn't taken a look at the menus, did that mean he hadn't known how expensive some of it would be before offering? Could he really afford to pay for both of them like he had offered?

As the waiter approached Yang was forced to put aside her thoughts. She would just have to hope for something on the cheaper side and pay what she could. She probably had enough for her food, she just hadn't expected to spend so much so soon into the date.

"I'm sorry to be a bother but I need to ask you something." Jaune kept his voice as even as possible but whispered so as to avoid attention. Judging by some of the smug looks coming from the other tables, multiple people had figured out what was going on or at the very least had come to an idea.

Yang couldn't place the waiter's accent as he spoke. "What seems to be the problem?"

Jaune looked to her for a minute, blushed, and swallowed his pride. "Can you recommend something from the menu, I can't really tell what sounds good."

The waiter didn't seem agitated, nor did he seem upset, he simply opened up the menu and gestured to one of the options. He gave a brief description of the food, instead putting it in normal people words. They were both having steak with a side of some special kind of pasta.

To drink, Jaune surprisingly knew what he wanted. "A Bottle of Vacuan Red please." The wiater left and Jaune turned to her. "What?"

"You know an awful lot about wine, anything I should be worried about?" Yang raised one eyebrow but smirked.

"My mom has a lot of wine." Jaune blushed slightly. "That sounds worse than it is. Dad goes out on a lot of missions, some take him a little farther away than others. He always grabs a bottle for the two of them to share when he gets back."

"That's sweet." Yang smiled. "I'm guessing she has a bit of a collection then?"

"Yeah, though in their defence, they drink most the bottle the first night he gets back." Jaune replied.

"That… doesn't do much for them." Yang chuckled softly. "Though I suppose that explains the seven sisters."

The waiter came back with their food before too long and they were left to eat in silence. Yang was thankful for the break in conversation while it lasted and she focused on her food.

It was good, better than what she usually ate, but she wasn't sure if it was really worth the price tag. If anything, she was fairly certain her dad had made a meal or two that tasted better. Once they had finished their main food the waiter returned.

"I trust the meal was satisfactory?" He spoke slowly but Yang was surprised to find it didn't feel like he was talking down at them.

"Yeah, it was really good." Jaune turned to her. "Or I thought so at least, how about you?"

"It was good." Yang answered honestly. "You really know what's good on your menu."

He bowed slightly. "Thank you madam. Will that be all for this evening?"

Jaune looked to her for a moment before answering. "I think so."

"Excellent, I shall return with your cheque."

Now came the moment she had been fearing. Yang dug into her purse for her card, freezing as Jaune looked at her.

"What are you doing?"

Yang sighed. "I appreciate you offering to buy, I really do, but it's incredibly expensive."

Jaune looked at her card as she attempted to hand it to him. "The food was expensive, yeah, but we aren't paying for it so…"

Yang's brain skipped a beat as she tried to understand what he said. Was he suggesting they leave without paying?

The waiter returned with a smile on his face. "Everything has been taken care of, you are free to go." Jaune returned the smile before standing up.

"Ready to go?" He held out his hand, offering it to her as she stood.

"W-what just happened?"

Jaune looked confused for a moment before turning back to her and figuring out what she was referring to. "Oh, well my dad saved the owners brother. As a favour he lets Arcs eat for free at his restaurants."

"W...what?" Yang supposed it made sense but… the food was just so expensive! She took his hand and rose from her chair. "Where are we going?"

Jaune smirked. "Nowhere fancy."

As they made to leave Yang kept looking back, expecting to see the waiters coming for them to demand they pay. She caught sight of the one who had served and billed them, he smiled and waved, but nothing more.

"You can literally eat here as much as you want?" Yang couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah, but we don't really do it often. We've only come here once or twice, only when we came to visit Vale." Jaune said. "With there being ten of us though, we could probably single-handedly bankrupt him." He chuckled softly. "I don't think he knew how many kids my dad had when he made that offer."

Yang laughed softly. "I bet that was a surprise."

The conversation went on from there. Jaune talked about his parents some, on Yang's request. Nicholas and Juniper Arc sounded amazing and Yang hoped to be able to meet them one day.

In turn she spent a little while talking about her dad and what it was like growing up on Patch.

Before she knew it they had found their way to the Vale's Central Park. The dense and packed urban areas giving way to a lush green section of the city that looked beautiful in the moonlight, the sun having set over an hour ago.

Thankfully the park was mostly abandoned, only a few couples walking around doing much the same they were.

Jaune directed them off the main path and to a side section right along a small river that ran through the center of the park. The shattered moon reflecting off the water, causing part of the water to glow white while the rest was a dark purple.

It was breathtakingly beautiful, it was also something she never would have expected to find in the city.

"Pyrrha and I have stopped here a few times when trying to get away from her fans." Jaune looked to her. "I thought you might like it." He led her to a bench that overlooked the water, but was otherwise obscured from view by bushes that surrounded it.

He put an arm over her shoulders and she leaned her head on his side. They sat like that in silence for some time. Simply enjoying each others company.

A quiet conversation crept up, not really focusing on anything. They talked about Beacon, about their teams, and about the upcoming festival. When those topics finally ran dry, they talked about home with Jaune going into great detail about all the little things he missed about Ansel and his house.

Eventually however, even that conversation ran its course, and they were once again left in silence. In truth, Yang loved it. Jaune was warm and she could smell some kind of cologne on him, it was a little strong but the fragrance was so very… Jaune.

She scooted in a little closer as a breeze went through, attempting to stay warm in his embrace. She wished that moment could have lasted longer, but eventually it came to an end.

"It's getting late." Jaune spoke softly. "We should start heading back to Beacon." He didn't make any effort to move and she wasn't inclined to either.

She turned her head up slightly, seeing his blue eyes looking out over the water. There was a sparkle in them Yang hadn't noticed before. It was very possible it was just the moon reflecting in his eyes but whatever it was it left her lost for words. He noticed her staring and turned to look at her.

That's when she moved.

Her lips locked onto his and she felt that familiar heat creep up her neck and burn at her cheeks. There was no electricity or shock, not that she had come to expect any. Jaune was far too familiar for that. Instead, it was a simple warmth that welled up inside her. A warmth that left her giddy and at a loss for words.

She felt the burning in her lungs and yet she still held it a second longer, even as the burning grew worse. The second she pulled away she gasped for air, Jaune doing much the same.

She rose slowly, offering her hand out towards Jaune with a smirk. "Consider that payment for the food."

Jaune took her hand and she pulled him up. "I guess I'll have to take you out more."

They turned back to the path, hugging each other tight. "Yes, you will."

As much as she had enjoyed herself, Yang knew what she had to do. After all, she couldn't let Jaune take her on something so special without doing the same for him.

Whether he knew it or not, Jaune had set the bar pretty high. Now she had to follow that up.

Yang had a date to plan...

* * *

**Authors Note: Welp, that's a thing… however will Yang top it? Find out next week on DRAGON BA… wait… wrong show. **

**Hope y'all enjoyed the chapter, and as ways leave a review. It helps out a lot for the story progress, lets me know what works and what doesn't.**

**If you'd like to help in a more serious way I have a pat reon. Mostly it's to let me know your thoughts on ideas before they come out, and I've been thinking about putting chapters up there early. That wont affect my upload schedule here at all, the way I write is that I stay a chapter ahead from what's posted, I might start uploading the most recent chapter there to get reviews on it the week before it goes live. Think of it kinda like rooster teeth first with RWBY. **

**Idk, well see. In the meantime, hope you liked the chapter and I look forward to hearing your thoughts in the review. **

**Sincerely SE**


	27. Chapter 27

**Author's note: Happy birthday to this story! It turns a year old around the time I'm uploading this chapter… yay!**

* * *

Yang kept her pace even as she approached the doors, even as the two men blocking it seemed to become very concerned. They had noticed her approaching for some time but only recently did they seem to recognize her.

What had been glares or indifferent looks turned into sneers and fear as they could make out the blonde who had previously wrecked their club… or, Juniors club rather.

They seemed to want to challenge her for a moment, and the two men shared a glance between themselves. They stepped aside, leaving a wide gap between them so that she could reach the doors.

It seemed she had left an impression she couldn't be entirely disappointed with.

The Club was rather empty in comparison to what she could remember but that was likely due to the early hour, most people not going clubbing at ten in the morning. Despite that fact, the man she was looking for stood behind the counter, one glass in hand as he looked up to see who had entered.

"Oh come on!" She couldn't make out his face from there but he didn't sound happy. Yang made her way over to the counter, adopting a smirk as she saw his glare.

"Hey there Junior, how have you been?" His look could easily be summed up as unimpressed.

"Do I have to pay you to stay away from my club?"

Yang laughed, perhaps a little harder than she should have, and Junior narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"Quite the sense of humour there." Yang sat down on one of the bar stools in front of him. "Though I'm afraid you can't afford me."

"What do ya want?" He punctuated his question by aggressively setting the glass in his hands down.

"Can't I just come by an-"

"No, no you can't." He didn't even let her finish. "Tell me what you want so you can get the hell out of my club!"

"Sheesh, I take back what I said about your sense of humour." Yang said. "Fine, I want to bring a date here within the next couple days and I figured I would let you know ahead of time… to avoid any incidents."

Junior glared at her. "And what makes you think I'd allow you to do that?"

"Well, for one you can't exactly stop me." She looked over at the goons who had made it clear they weren't going to get involved by staying far away from them. "And two, I'm just looking for a night out."

Junior glared at his men, mumbling something about loyalty under his breath. "This isn't exactly a good idea, on either of our parts. If the girls see you they'll likely try to throw you out, even if I tell them not to… not that I would try and stop them of course."

Yang rolled her eyes and the meaningless threat. If they could they would have done so already.

"Look, The Club is _the_ place to go for a fun night." Yang attempted to play to his ego slightly. "There isn't a better joint in all of Vale and I need the best."

Junior stood a little taller at her words, even if his suspicion was clear. He took a moment to think before speaking. "You must really like this guy, whoever he is. Poor bastard doesn't have a clue what he's getting into, does he?"

Yang laughed slightly. "He… has an idea."

"I was wondering about the hair cut, guy must be something…" Junior sighed. "Fine, but only this one time. After this I don't ever want to see you again."

Yang nodded her head. "That's perfect, I-"

"There is one condition though." Junior grinned slightly as it became her turn to look suspicious. "I can't stop the girls from trying to fight you, which means they would have to have the night off. Problem is, then I'm out of muscle." Yang didn't like where this was going. "And if I've got huntsmen and huntresses attending, things are bound to go a little crazy, even if they are in just training." Yang really didn't like where this was going. "You can attend for a night, if you agree to break up any fights that get out of hand."

Yang took a second to consider his offer. "I am still on a date you know, I cant waste all my time breaking up every guy that wants to rough it a bit."

"You won't have to." Junior held up a hand. "The girls only ever get involved if it's something the boys can't handle… like a certain blonde brawler." He focused his eyes on her. "If you want in, that's the deal."

"You didn't sound very willing before, what changed?"

"The girls have been working every night for the last month and a half." Junior explained. "They've been asking for some time off but I haven't been able to risk it, if you and your boy-toy agree to replace them for a night I can get them off my back."

Yang decided to press her luck. "Drinks on the house?"

"The first drink."

Yang sighed. "I guess that's the best I'm gonna get. You got a deal." She held out her hand for him to reluctantly take.

* * *

"So… how do I look?" Jaune held out his arms slightly, allowing his team to take in his outfit. Blue jeans, a tight fit white t-shirt, and a black button up shirt he left open. All new of course and all meant to work off one another. He thought it looked good, but then again, he had thought that about the last ten or so combinations he had gone with.

"You look nice." Pyrrha was the first to speak but didn't really elaborate.

"It does look rather smart." Ren gave a little more detail. "It's certainly better than the last one."

Nora just nodded her head to what Ren said.

Jaune sighed and sat down on his bed. "I guess that's good enough for now."

"It looks good Jaune, really." Pyrrha said. "Yang will love it."

He smiled as best he could. "I know Pyr, I know. I just… I want to put the same effort she did for my date." Jaune blushed at the memory. "She looked beautiful… stunning. I… I was hoping to do the same." He shook his head. "It's dumb, I know."

"I think it's sweet." Pyrrha's voice was soft. "But I also think Yang won't care." Jaune interrupted her but she continued before he could. "I think she'll be impressed no matter what you wear."

Jaune stared at her. He wasn't quite as sure on that front but he decided to listen, if only to save him some of the worry. It didn't help that they were running out of time.

For not the first time Jaune checked his scroll. He was supposed to meet Yang at the bullheads in an hour. He stood and made his way to the door.

"I thought you said your date started at nine?" Ren raised one eyebrow. "I understand being early but an hour?"

"Yang will know I'll show up early, which means she'll show up earlier. Which means I need to show up even earlier." Jaune winced at the way it sounded. "I wanna be sure to beat her there."

Jaune opened the door, looking out across the hallway… just in time to see Yang emerge and shut the door behind her, before turning and promptly freezing when he saw her.

Nora giggled behind him. "I think that ship has already sailed."

Jaune stepped through the doorway and closed it behind himself. "So…"

"So…" Yang responded.

Jaune felt his cheeks heat up as they stood there in awkward silence. He swallowed and stepped forward. "Ready to go?"

Yang took a second to respond but forced a smile on her face that seemed genuine. "Yep." She took his hand and stepped off in the direction of the docks.

They made the walk in relative silence but it never felt awkward or stilleted. Instead it felt more… comfortable. He thought it was crazy but he felt like he had an idea of what she was thinking, at least enough so that words were never necessary. It was a strange bond he had with Pyrrha and some of his sisters but with Yang… it was different.

They arrived in Vale a short time later and Jaune followed her as they made their way to the more popular district.

He heard the building before he saw it, the loud music fading more into noise so far away. He could also see the rather large line outside the main door. It seemed the place hadn't actually opened yet and most people were waiting to be let in.

It looked like they must have been waiting for an hour or two at least.

Jaune sighed and started to head for the back of the line, until Yang pulled him in a different direction.

As they approached the front of the line he could hear the mumbles and complaints but nobody made any effort to stop them. Most people seemed content to let the bouncers tell them off.

The suited men casted a… decently intimidating figure, for civilians. He highly doubted they could stop anybody with actual training, but then again they weren't trying to. Their main concern was rowdy college students or drunks.

"Yo." Yang waved to them as she stopped in front of them.

One of the men looked up at her. "Xiao Long." He gave a slight nod of recognition and stepped to the side. "Junior has set aside one of the VIP booths for you, they overlook most the club and will let you see if anything goes wrong."

Jaune heard the crowd outside switch from mildly annoyed to entirely offended and for a moment he thought they might try something. They didn't of course.

He raised one eyebrow as they were let in but Yang made a motion with her hands that seemed to say 'not here'. Instead, they followed one of the suited men to a large booth raised above the dance floor.

A waitress came over and got their orders before leaving. Once they were alone, Jaune's curiosity finally won out.

"How did you pull that off?"

Yang smirked. "One of my many skills."

"Anything I need to worry about?"

"You're no fun." She rolled her eyes but her smile didn't fade. "Part of the deal to get in was that I need to play security if anything gets out of hand. So I might have to take care of a couple drunks but other than that we're good."

"So you get into the club _and _get to fight without the risk of getting in trouble?" He asked. "How is that fair for the owner?"

Yang's grin grew even larger. "He certainly thinks it is, but enough of that." The waitress returned with their drinks. Jaune hadn't gotten anything fancy since he didn't really know much about them. Yang raised her glass. "To an eventful night!"

Jaune reluctantly mimicked the action, clinking their glasses together, and as he downed his drink he got the feeling it was going to be a long night.

* * *

He wasn't entirely sure how he'd gotten himself into this situation. Maybe it was his choice in woman, maybe it was his choice in drink, or maybe, just maybe, it was this drunk punks fault.

Jaune blocked a sloppy lunge that might have been called a punch if he was being generous, before countering with a sweep of his legs. He was slow, especially so in comparison to his friends, but to a civilian it was more than enough and the drunkard fell to the ground.

He reached for the glass he had been forced to set down and drank what was left, gesturing over for the waitress to bring another one, and some guys to take care of the guy currently unconscious on the floor.

Slowly, Jaune made his way back to their booth, just in time to meet Yang. Both of them had sweat on their brows but neither of them complained.

"I really didn't think it would be so active." Yang had to shout to be heard over the music.

Jaune reached for his glass as the waitress finally came back. "Didn't you say you nearly destroyed this place before?"

Yang attempted to hide her blush behind the action of taking a drink. Jaune pretended not to notice. "Yeah, but that's me. These guys are mostly just idiots."

He nodded his head as he looked to the side door the bouncers had taken the last couple guys through, before his eyes fell to the dance floor.

"Looks like we have a bit of down time." Jaune stood from his spot, finishing his now favourite drink, and holding out his hand. "Wanna dance?"

"I thought you'd never ask." Yang smirked and stood, taking his hand as they made their way to the dance floor. "Lets see some of those moves, lover boy!"

Jaune smirked, hoping that his cheeks were not too red. Yang's were, but he wasn;t sure if that was the alcohol, fighting, or some kind of embarrassment. He did his best to figure it out but his mind wasn't really operating at full speed. Then again, that was kinda the point of alcohol, wasn't it?

He wasn't sure how long they spent on the dance floor, they had been called off only a couple times to deal with rowdy customers before meeting back up in the middle. Eventually however, it became too crowded and they decided to take a break.

He wasn't sure when it happened but one moment they were sitting down next to each other, and the next she was on top of him. He couldn't really complain, in part because her mouth was locked with his and to do so would force her away, but also because he was enjoying it too much.

Through his hazy vision and clouded mind Yang was… normal. He thought that might have sounded rude if said out loud, but to him it made perfect sense. While the world around them became a mesh of noise and blurry light, Yang was clear as ever. Her hair was a little ruffled, her clothes creased, and her tongue was definitely more aggressive than it usually was.

He didn't complain though, especially about that last part. She was beautiful and he drew her closer as things started to get a little more grabby.

There was a cough to their side, one that he desperately tried to ignore. Then another and Yang growled, pulling away.

"What!?"

The waitress who had been serving them all night looked nervous and tried to hide behind the tray she kept clung to her chest. "There's been a disturbance by the bar, Junior sent me to get you two."

Yang sighed and slid off him, slowly standing and turning to the bar. Jaune made to follow her, insearch of whoever had interrupted them, only stopping to finish off the drink that the waitress had brought them.

Jaune hadn't really been taking pleasure in their new role up to this point, instead his focus had been more on the exhaustion and act of fighting itself than the person he was fighting. He made an exception this time.

Somebody was definitely going to pay for the fact that they had interrupted Yang and him. He would make them pay… or, he would at least try to beat Yang to it.

* * *

**Authors Note: A year old! Thats... not nearly as impressive as it sounded in my head... oh well, I'll drink to it. As far as this chapter goes... eh, I've done better but I've done worse. I think its a fairly ok chapter, though I wont lie its mostly fluff and filler, but its useful fluff and filler!**

**I do wanna say it now, there is an actual plot and story planned if you couldn't tell. All shall be told in time but I just wanna give warning now that PLOT will happen. Dont hate me for it... please? **

**As always I hoped yall enjoyed and I encourage you to review, really helps me out. Even if its gust a "Hey, I like it." or a "Hey, I hate it." Either one help... if you wanna expand on that great! if not, also great!**

**Sincerely SE**


	28. Chapter 28

**Authors Note: Sorry for this being uploaded later than usual, got distracted this morning and forgot to upload before going to work. **

* * *

Ozpin took a sip from his coffee, attempting to use the action to help him think. While it wasn't quite able to offer him the secrets of the universe, it did afford him some clarity and strength of mind as he prepared for the discussion to come.

The wizard always hated these kinds of discussions, no matter how necessary or often they may have happened.

"What can you tell us of her combat ability?" James, as ever, was straight to the point.

Qrow made a show of pulling his flask out and taking a long swig, much to the General's annoyment.

"She did good for her age, but I've seen better." Qrow turned from the window. "She was fast, and she's a pretty strong fighter, but she was caught off guard and beaten by Torchwick of all people."

Glynda was quick to come to the defense of her student. "Torchwick is not an easy opponent, he was once a very promising huntsman and he has several encounters with professional hunters."

"Doesn't matter." Qrow responded. "No matter how tough Torchwick might be, the people who took down Amber are stronger."

Ozpin was forced to sigh at the mention of her name. Amber had been a truly powerful huntress in her own right, even before the maiden powers had been transferred to her. She wasn't the most talented in melee but she had a mind and heart unlike many who choose such a life.

She had been one of his brightest pupils and his failure to protect her still weighted heavily on his mind. Ozpin attempted to hide his emotions in a drink of coffee, though, judging by the look from Glynda, he hadn't quite managed it.

"Overall I think she did ok… I also think she would die in a fight with whoever attacked Amber." Qrow was as blunt as ever. "I don't think she's ready for this."

"No one is ever truly ready." James turned towards Ozpin. "Especially a student."

Ozpin sighed at the memories of their arguments. "I can not in good faith accept Miss Schnee as our first choice."

The General looked like he wanted to argue and defend his suggestion but restrained himself. "At least allow her to be a fall back choice, in the event that Nikos says no."

Ozpin considered the idea for sometime. "We shall see, James." It wasn't the answer he wanted, but he accepted it for now at least. "What else can you tell us of the battle, Qrow?"

"The girl's semblance is out." Qrow took another swig from his flask. "It was out the second she started tossing Paladins around. If you were hoping that that secret would help her you can give up on it. The enemy have to have gotten word."

"Then we must reconsider some of our old candidates." Ozpin kept his frustration hidden only due to lifetimes of practice.

"Scarlatina?" Glynda asked.

"Perhaps…" Ozpin was reluctant to go any further in detail however, there was far too much to think on at the moment. He needed time to compose himself and think. "What of the scroll you found?"

The sudden topic change didn't go unnoticed but there were no complaints.

"Torchwick's." Qrow set the item down on the desk. "Or at least that's where blondie said he found it."

"Torchwick is a professional." James said. "I find it strange to think he left it in the open where it could be found."

Ozpin took a drink of his coffee to buy himself time to think.

"When we got there it was pretty clear they weren't ready to go." Qrow explained. "Probably planned to destroy it or something, got sidetracked with the whole 'our base is under attack' thing."

"Unlikely." Glynda responded. "He's avoided capture for years, in part due to his skill, but also due to his intelligence."

Ozpin set his mug down. "Perhaps he wanted us to find it." The room was silent for a moment. "It's only a theory of course, but perhaps he finds his involvement just as unpleasant as we do."

"You think he's trying to betray whoever is behind this?" Qrow was the first to consider his idea.

"Perhaps, though I doubt he would offer much if we were to question him." Captured or not, Torchwick would likely never simply tell them what they wished to know.

"If that's the case why hasn't he given us anything in his interrogation?" James asked. "If he wants his boss to lose, why not tell us who they are?"

Qrow scoffed. "Probably because you're interrogating him."

Ozpin hummed. "Perhaps, but most likely he is trying to play both sides."

That got the room's attention.

"He doesn't know whose going to come out on top." Qrow was as quick as ever. "He wants to make sure he's on the winning side before it comes time to end."

The room was silent for a moment as they thought. James stood up, turning towards them.

"If you'll allow me to take the scroll…" He asked despite knowing the answer, this was a job for the Atlesians. "I'll get my best working on it. If that will be all, I'd rather not wait."

"I believe that will be all for today." Ozpin stood from behind his desk. "It has been a pleasure, old friend."

"As always." Ironwood turned and headed for the door.

Qrow waited for the elevator door to close before speaking. "Prick."

Glynda sighed. "Must you always speak ill of him?"

Qrow nodded in affirmation before taking another drink from his flask. "If you don't need me for anything else, I'll be going."

"Actually" Ozpin started. "There was one more thing." Qrow looked displeased with that fact but made no attempt to leave. "Your nieces team, I would like you to train them." Qrow did not look pleased. "And team JNPR as well."

The man sighed, attaching his flask back to his hip. "Any particular reason?"

"They seem to get into more trouble than most people their age." Ozpin took a second to think before continuing. "I would rather them be prepared when rushing off into danger, and regardless of the candidate we choose it is very likely both teams will become involved."

Qrow's face settled into something between a grimace and pride at the fact his nieces were so skilled. "Yeah, yeah. No need to try and guilt me into it."

"That was not my intention."

"I know Oz, I know." Qrow turned towards the elevator. "I guess I'll go hunt them down now, better to start as soon as possible."

"I look forward to seeing their performance during the tournament." Ozpin brought his mug to his lips, finishing off what remained of his beverage.

Qrow smirked, no doubt at the memories of his own Vytal days. "Oh, it'll be a performance all right." He waved as the elevator door closed. "Take care Oz."

The door closed and the two people remaining in the room sat in silence for a time.

"I don't like it, she isn't ready." Glynda was the one to break the silence. "No matter her experience, or how useful her semblance, I still think we should try for an older team."

Ozpin sighed. "I wish that were an option Glynda, I truly do." He stared down into his empty mug. "There is much work to be done to prepare for Vytal, unless you have anything else to add?"

The deputy headmistress of Beacon Academy sighed and the wizard couldn't help but agree. They were about to be busy, very busy indeed.

* * *

"Ugh…" Jaune felt his body slowly dragged him out of his slumber. He could feel the pain in his head begin to surge before his aura tried to mitigate it. It didn't do very much of course, aura never really stopped pain, just the permanent damage that came along with it.

Still the cool feeling of his aura pooling in one part of his body at least helped to mitigate it somewhat. An icepack probably would have been just as good.

"Rise and shine." He wasn't certain who was yelling, but the sudden volume caused him to jolt and reach for his sword. He missed of course, instead succeeding in throwing his arm out and hitting it on the wall.

Jaune felt his body shutter. "Why?" He felt that it was a very good question to ask, even as he attempted to curl back into a ball beneath the blankets.

Said blankets were ripped away from him and the cold air of their room forced him to wake up, at least enough that he couldn't simply roll back over and sleep.

"We have training to do!"

"Nora, that was mean." The ever calm, and somehow still too loud, voice of Ren rang out from somewhere off to the side.

Jaune cracked his eyes open, wincing as the light seemed to hammer him down into his bed. "Please… the light… it burns."

"The light? Nora, close the blinds." The light dimed and Jaune was able to see somewhat, it still hurt mind you, but he could at least function now.

The first thing he was able to see was Nora's face mere inches away from his own. "So… have fun last night?"

Jaune groaned at the sound of… sound. "I… can't really remember."

Most of last night was a blur to his mind, he could remember some vague things. The drink he had been throwing back, strawberry sunrise, Yang's favourite and apparently his as well. He could remember fighting… a lot of fighting, and he could also remember Yang on top of him.

He didn't want to say any of that of course. Nora would probably take that last part the wrong way or at the very least they would tease him about it. He wasn't certain he could take that at the moment, not without his head splitting open.

Instead he decided to play the amnesia card.

Nora's features drew up into a pout as she stepped back from him some. "Aww, I wanted to hear how you and Yang ended up sleeping together."

_That_ was something he did not remember… at all. In fact, he was fairly certain nothing like that had happened… mostly certain…

His panic must have been visible, because his partner felt the need to jump to the rescue. "Yang and you made it back to the door and fell asleep leaning against the wall mid kiss." Jaune felt his cheeks burn in embarrassment. "Ruby was the one to notice first."

In that moment, Jaune wished his headache would have the kindness to kill him already. Not only had he kissed a girl to sleep, said girls sister had been the one to find them.

"Here." His partner held something out and Jaune took it without hesitation. "I've heard water helps."

Jaune was already halfway through the bottle before she had finished talking. It helped a bit but not as much as he would have liked.

"Thanks Pyr, I owe ya." Jaune stood slowly, making his way to the bathroom. "I… may have overdone it a bit for my first time." Not that it had been an unpleasant experience, it was just the present that made him hate himself.

"What are partners for?" She was as perfect as ever.

The bathroom was still warm when he finally made it there. Whoever had taken the last shower had clearly only just gotten out and he had to fight the urge to curl up on the floor and sleep.

It took a monumental amount of willpower to turn the shower on and begin the process of undressing from the clothes he had worn the night before. By the time he was out of the shower his head had mostly cleared up, though the lingering headache was still present.

Pyrrha was kind enough to toss him his clothes and he emerged from the bathroom feeling as fresh as could be expected. It was both better and worse than he had expected.

Nora clapped as he stepped out.

"So what was that I heard about training?" He asked. "Or was I just imagining that?"

"Mr. Branwen offered to help team RWBY train in light of the Mountain Glenn mission." Pyrrha explained. "They invited us to come along."

"Damn, I was hoping I imagined it."

Pyrrha wasn't the only one to giggle at his misery. He couldn't help but smile at himself. The night before, what little he could remember of it, had been… special, unique, and something so very Yang.

He made a mental note to do it again sometime, maybe even see about taking some of their team along with. Not Nora though, he didn't think anybody was prepared for that.

"Did they say what time?"

"Now, essentially." Ren looked at his scroll before standing. "We need time to stop off at our lockers and pick up our weapons. After that we need to head directly to one of the outdoor arenas."

Jaune fought back a groan and, putting on his best smile, stepped towards the door. "What are we waiting for?"

* * *

**Authors Note: Nothing fancy this chapter, some filler between chapters, some comments from characters, and the such. **

**The next chapter is proving to be a bit of a pain so heads up that next week might either be late or a little lower quality. We'll just see how it goes. **

**Hope ya'll enjoyed and always remember to drop a review. **

**Sincerely SE**


	29. Chapter 29

**Authors Note: Don't forget to leave a review and let me know your thoughts after reading, helps me polish the chapter and make them better for the future. **

* * *

Crocea Mors cut a path downward, all his strength behind the swing as he set to cut his opponent down the middle. She danced out of the way before the hit could connect, leaving behind something else to take the hit instead.

The strike landed and cut deep. Jaune had the time to panic before his target exploded in fire. Blakes Shadow clones had a tendency to do that whenever she was fighting him.

She insisted it was simply her way of dealing with his large aura reserves. He was still not very sure of that excuse, by that logic she should have done the same with Yang or Pyrrha, but he was willing to accept it at the very least.

He held his shield up to block the shots he knew were coming as he struggled to regain his footing and breath. He was unprepared for the sudden strike to his shield but managed to keep himself from falling back, at least until the next strike hit and he lost his footing entirely, stumbling back.

Jaune pulled back and repositioned his shield in front of him, careful to keep his sword ready to counter attack in the break between his opponent's strikes. Blake was never a very hard hitter by Beacon standards, preferring hit and run tactics to brute force, but that didn't mean she was weak either.

When she wanted to she could really pack a punch, and he currently had the aura level to prove it, but she usually decided to wait to use that strength until her opponent was unprepared. She liked to wait for an opening, and unfortunately for him, he had a lot of them.

He saw the slight tension in her knees build just before she prepared to lunge, a subtle thing Yang had warned him to look for in spars with her partner. He was able to get his shield up to block the first strike and he used the second of pause to bring his sword around in a wide arc. It didn't connect with anything but he had been prepared for that.

Jaune stepped towards his opponent, forcing Blake to step back or risk losing her footing. It wasn't a difficult choice to make and she took a step back, then another when Jaune repeated the step forward. This time shoving his shield out to push her further.

Blake was paranoid at the best of times, and she suspected he was up to something before the third attempt. Her narrowed eyes betrayed her thoughts as she tried to unravel his plan. She was smart and had already started to pull back before Jaune was able to press her anymore.

It just so happened that his third shield bash had been meant as a feint.

This time he did more than push with his shield, instead he extended his arm out, forcing Blake to dodge to the right, leaving her unprepared for his sword to follow up.

It was an okay plan, something she probably wouldn't let him get away with again, and it might have worked, If she hadn't used her semblance the second she came to a stop, leaving a clone behind to take her place as she jumped back. His sword hit its mark and a second later it exploded.

Fighting Blake was like that, Ren was similar though a little easier without the convenient semblance.

Try to hit, miss, take hit, come up with a plan to land a hit, execute plan, miss, take hit. It was a tad bit frustrating to fight people who were just so much faster and more agile. It required him to think on his feet and not just muscle his way through.

He always enjoyed it despite the frustration, even when he lost. That wasn't to say he never won. Ren wasn't too bad, while he was agile Jaune could at least lock him down in an engagement and knock out a few hits. He'd managed a couple wins from their spars.

Blake was a different matter. Any time he started to back her into a corner, she could semblance her way out of it. Ruby was the same way, albeit for a different reason. Blake was a skilled fighter and she was more than smart enough to figure out his plans before he could really use any. Still, he had managed one or two victories, though none of them had ever been glamorous and had mostly just been luck on his part.

Still, he had managed to eke out a couple and most of their spars were fairly long. He took some pride in the fact that he didn't go down quick. Once the spar was officially over the rest of their teams made their way over, along with their new teacher.

"Alright alright, Broody wins." Qrow didn't sound impressed.

"My name's Blake."

"Right." Qrow took a swig from his flask. "Anyways, the knight lost. Suppose I should do the teacherly thing and explain why... Firecracker, why'd your boy toy lose?"

Yang blushed slightly, either at the sudden attention or what her uncle had called him, but she responded quickly. "He can't get past her semblance."

"Yeah, but there's something specific I'm looking for?" Qrow had said that he was a teacher at Signal, Jaune struggled to see how that could have been true. He knew what he was talking about, sure, and he respected the man… but his teaching technique was a little strange.

Strange in the sense that it didn't exist. The man seemed content to let them teach themselves, mostly through beating on each other. He'd offer the occasional advice or word of improvement, before falling silent once more.

It was a strange mix of efficient and annoying. Jaune struggled to tell if he liked it or not. Yang and Ruby seemed to have been used to it. Blake was by far the worse when it came to dealing with Qrow's unique... personality.

"He's fighting her where she's strongest?" Yang replied.

"Close, but not quite what I was looking for." Qrow shrugged his shoulders. "Anybody else?" When nobody said anything he continued. "She's faster, stronger, more skilled, and has more experience. Even with all of that, you're trying to fight her fair."

It took Jaune a second to figure out what he meant by that. "I'm not trying to use dirty tricks on my friends."

"So you're just gonna lose instead?" Qrow asked.

The group was silent for a moment before anybody spoke up.

"It's only a spar, Mr. Branwen." Weiss was the only one to insist on the formal title for the less than formal instructor.

"Here it's only a spar." Qrow gestured towards the main building of Beacon. "But out there, in the real world, there aren't second chances where you can decide to use that nasty trick you've been keeping to yourself. Mountain Glenn should have served as a lesson to you all, to show you that you can't always afford to be the honorable fighter." He turned towards Jaune. "You especially. Whether you want to admit it or not you're _way_ behind everybody else in terms of raw skill."

"Uncle Qrow, that's not true!" Ruby was the first to try and defend him... but she was far from the only one. In fact, most of those present took some kind of offense to it.

In the end though Jaune couldn't disagree. He was weaker than the rest of them, no matter how much they might insist he wasn't. It had taken two of the strongest people in their year, one of them was even a renowned fighter, just to get him to the point where he could hold his own. He had come a long way, and his friends would insist on that fact,but at the end of the day he had a lot of work to do in order to catch up.

He felt like that fact should have, and it had once, but it no longer did. His partner had never been anything less than supportive and Yang had helped him adapt. He knew he wasn't as good as everyone else, but he also knew that despite that fact he was able to hold his own against people who had trained all their lives. It took time to wear him out and that was time that allowed others to act. It didn't leave him in the best place for one on one fights but made him a strong team fihgter.

His friends had helped him become something better than he ever would have achieved on his own. He owed them more than he thought he could ever pay back, Pyrrha and Yang especially.

His mind came back to Qrow's words. Who benefited from them holding back? Would the fact that they didn't give training their all hurt them in the future? Would it lead to somebody getting injured? Or worse?

Maybe he was overthinking it, looking into it too much, but he couldn't help but think Qrow had a point.

"Guys..." He didn't speak loudly, but it seemed the rest of the group had been waiting for him to speak. "I... I think he has a point." The group seemed surprised, even Qrow looked shocked that somebody had agreed with him. "Mountain Glenn was... not the ideal mission. Torchwick beat Pyrrha because he didn't fight fair, the White Fang managed to get away with the train because they didn't fight fair..."

The group was silent and seemed to struggle with his words. Ren was the first to speak. "Results are what matters?"

"Pretty much." Qrow was the one to respond to his friend's question. "Obviously you can't go sacrificing civilians for an advantage or anything, but being deceitful and manipulative in a fight can more than cover the gap in skill. I can't tell you the number of 'superior' fighters I bested when I was your age because I didn't fight 'honorably'." Qrow took a drink from his flask. "Copper you're up next."

His partner took a second to realize who he meant by that. "Who am I fighting?"

Qrow brought a hand to his chin. "Hmm, how about Yang and her boy-toy."

Jaune tried not to blush at that, he really did. Sadly he could feel the heat creep up his neck nonetheless.

"Are you sure I can't go against you?" Yang glared at her uncle. "Or are you just getting slow in your old age?"

"Careful there firecracker, might take you up on that." Qrow said. "Another time though."

Jaune moved over to the far side of the sparring ring they had been using over the last two hours. Yang joined him and they both looked across the ring at their opponent.

Jaune sighed. Pyrrha was one of the best people he had ever met. She was nicer than she had any right to be and was kind in a way very few people seemed to be. He considered her family, much like the rest of his team, and had attempted to avoid upsetting her. By, for example, holding her moniker against her.

The Invincible Girl stood across from them, as much as he hated using that name it fit Pyrrha perfectly. In combat she was amazing, leaps and bounds ahead of anybody else in their year, and now she was set to oppose them.

They would need a plan if they were gonna win, that much was obvious, sadly no plan ever survives contact with Pyrrha. That was just a fact. She was more than talented, she was intelligent, cunning in combat, and worst of all, she was experienced. Any plan you made, the odds were somebody had already tried it or she would figure it out soon enough.

Meaning your plan had to be adaptable.

Jaune had no such plan.

Yang stretched her muscles out a little as they got ready for the match, Pyrrha doing much the same from the other side of the arena.

She had hoped that Jaune had some kind of secret for fighting his partner, maybe a trick or two up his sleeve that he had thought about during their training. She had been hoping he would know how to win.

Unfortunately Jaune had no real plans. In the end they had decided on having her be the aggressive upfront fighter while Jaune would hang back and look for any openings he could find. It wasn't the most thought out plan but it had been necessary.

Jaune had already been in a spar with Blake and that had been a long one. Not only was he tired both mentally and physically, his aura was already starting off a little lower. Yang was fresh considering she hadn't done any spars since their uncle had come to get them. She was also one of the few fighters in their year who had been able to challenge Pyrrha.

She'd never won of course, but she had been a challenge.

Yang regretted that fact now as she stared down her impending doom from across the arena.

"Well... you ready?" Jaune kept his voice low.

"Oh yeah" Yang responded sardonically. "Who isn't ready to get beat into the ground?"

Jaune chuckled softly. "At least we'll be beat down together?"

"That isn't nearly as inspiring as you think it is." Yang held a hand over her eyes dramatically. "My will to fight has been ruined, you'll have to go on without me."

Jaune rolled his eyes before lowering his body slightly, holding his shield up in front of him. Yang fell into a low stance and slid her foot back some, preparing to rush in the moment her uncle called the match to start.

As the seconds dragged on she began to wonder if he ever would. Just as she was about to start the fight herself, her uncle finally spoke.

"Go!"

Yang pushed off her back foot, throwing herself forward just as Pyrrha did something similar. Pyrrha lunged with her weapon, striking towards her face. Yang ducked beneath the strike, striking forward with her fist towards Pyrrha's stomach.

Pyrrha's shield blocked her hit and deflected it to the side slightly as Yang followed up with her other fist thrown towards the girl's head. This time Pyrrha ducked back and kicked out with her feet.

Yang felt the strike land on her leg and just about buckled before regaining her momentum. Pyrrha was about to follow through when something off to the side flashed into view and another sword caught her own, giving Yang time to pull back.

The two locked blades for a moment before Pyrrha pulled back, stepping out of the way of the strike and blocking the follow up with her shield. Jaune charged in and caught her sword on his shield as he attempted to push it to the side and create an opening. It didn't work as Pyrrha stepped back rather than allow herself to be dragged around by her own weapon.

Jaune followed and Pyrrha moved her shield into her vision in order to block his strike. A strike which never came. To her credit, it only took a second for Pyrrha to realize something was wrong and she immediately rolled to the side. Saving her from a direct blast from Ember Celica.

The dust and rock kicked up allowed Yang the opportunity to push forward and force Pyrrha back some. Jaune moved to the side in an attempt to flank her. Again, to her credit, Pyrrha realized immediately. Unfortunately for her she was kept busy by Yang and unable to properly maneuver as she was pushed closer and closer to the edge of the arena.

Jaune stepped forward and was about to strike when he suddenly dived to the side, just as Pyrrha's shield came flying in his direction. He managed to get mostly out of the way but it still managed to hit his leg, chipping away at his aura once more.

A second later the shield was back in Pyrrha's hand. She spun with the momentum, using it to launch a kick towards Yang's legs. She managed to brace herself and keep her ground but a shield came flying towards her face immediately after.

Yang managed to get her arms up to prevent it from slamming into her face, her aura taking the hit. She took the follow up strike on her right arm, driving the left towards her opponents face.

Pyrrha bent backwards, kicking up with her legs and driving Yang back. Jaune moved in with a swing of his sword, forcing her back farther. She brought her sword up and caught his, sliding it down her blade before pushing it to the side, leaving Jaune open.

Yang rushed in to try and force Pyrrha back but was caught off guard for her shield to catch her fist.

Pyrrha lowered herself and swung her legs around knocking Yang off her feet. She switched her weapon into javelin form and Yang barely managed to roll out of the way in time to avoid it stabbing through her chest. Yang attempted to get back on her feet but a shield smashed into the back of her leg and she was forced back down.

Yang twisted over, prepared to try and push Pyrrha's blade to the side. She heard somebody yell from the side and Jaune crashed into his partner. Rather than trying to push her back and use his sword he tackled her to the ground.

It took Yang a second to get to her feet and during that time Jaune was attempting to keep Pyrrha from disengaging, in doing so he was taking a number of hits that looked like they hurt. Without an aura meter she couldn't tell what Jaune was down to but it had to have been getting low.

Jaune threw himself to the side and Yang used the opportunity to fire several shots at their opponent, forcing her back some and closer towards the edge of the arena. It had become clear that they weren't going to beat her the way they had been attempting. Wearing Pyrrha down took far too long and an entire team of huntsmen, albeit ones in training.

Jaune caught her eyes for a brief second and subtly nodded. They were gonna try to push her out of the ring, of course that was easier said than done. Usually Pyrrha had a solid control of the ring allowing her to dictate where the fight went in the ring, keeping her safely away from the edge of the ring and where she had the advantage.

She and Jaune weren't the standard opponents though. Both were strong and capable and they had a solid understanding of how each other fought.

Of course Pyrrha noticed their not so subtle look and was quick to figure out their plan. She seemed to know where she was standing and just how close to the edge. She began to step forward and Jaune charged her.

The engagement was incredibly one sided, Jaune trying to match his partner in terms of sword skill and failing spectacularly. It didn't matter though because his fighting style was very stationary, and despite her power, Pyrrha wasn't able to force him back. When she tried to step around he forced her back, or failing that Yang jumped in with the added benefit of giving Jaune a second of rest.

Even still, it took a couple engagements to force her back just a couple feet, and the closer she got the harder she fought. Eventually they couldn't push her any farther and it began to look like they were fated to lose. Jaune brought his sword down and locked it against Pyrrha's, then let go.

The sudden shift was enough to have Pyrrha fall forward and bring her sword down. Jaune cried out as her sword struck his shoulder, and his aura flared. A second later Jaune threw himself down, causing his partner to stumble forward once more.

Yang took the opportunity for what it was and fired all the remaining shots from her gauntlets.

As the smoke cleared she saw Pyrrha holding her shield in front of her face and her feet firmly planted... just outside the ring.

* * *

**Author's Note: This chapter… gave me so many issues. I… I just cant express… I had to call in my entire team of editours for this one just to get the fight scene coherent… They did a good job of helping me polish it but I'm still not super happy with how it turned out. **

**Other than that though things have been going good in real life, got promoted on the 1st… no, really. April fools day is my new date of rank… I SWEAR. Got waived to PFC, not a big deal for most but hey I'll take the extra money. Kinda need it because I'm throwing like 400 a month into my retirement plan… man, and to think, less than a year ago I was in High School.**

**Your reviews and thoughts would be greatly appreciated.**

**SIncerely SE**


	30. Chapter 30

**Authors Note: Be sure to review once you're done and if you'd like to help support my stories, both fanfiction and original, consider donating to my Pat reon. **

* * *

Jaune couldn't help his smile, even hours after the fact. They'd done it, they'd actually done it. They'd beaten Pyrrha Nikos in a spar. Sure it had been a two on one, but Pyrrha had beaten entire teams before. They'd managed it just between the two of them.

His partner had taken it in stride of course, if anything she seemed happy for him. Even in defeat she was too polite.

Yang's smile had nearly been as bright as his. Nora had been demanding the three hold a rematch all day, yelling about deceit and treachery. No rematch came of course, though one was planned for after the Vytal festival. or whenever Qrow felt it was time for them to try and hold their title.

For the time being, Yang had decided they were now the default Mistral Champions. Talks were on going with the sponsorship deals. The look in Pyrrha's eyes said she was looking forward to the rematch. Jaune shuttered at the thought.

The day had ended with both teams cramming into one dorm room in celebration of Pyrrha finally losing.

That sounded far worse than it was.

It was all in good fun of course and everybody made it clear they were joking. Pyrrha's smile showed she was enjoying it just as much as the rest of them.

To celebrate Ruby and Yang suggested they hold a video game tournament to act as a sort of rematch.

Pyrrha didn't even make it past the first match. To be fair, she made the mistake of agreeing to go against Ruby in the first set. The same person who had picked the game they would be playing.

The Not-Quite-Invincible Girl didn't seem to care, enjoying the company and smiling along to a story that Nora was telling. She made no attempt to hold back her laughter whenever Ren would step in to correct the less than accurate details.

Jaune had been thrown out of the tournament as well, courtesy of Yang also having a hand in picking the game. He never was very good at fighting games, at least not as good as Yang.

The evening wrapped up after a few hours, most of them wanting to get enough sleep to be able to wake up before noon the next day. There was to be a school wide meeting in the morning, some kind of speech from the headmaster, and then they were free to go.

For the last couple weeks they had had mostly free periods, to give them time to properly prepare and train for the Vytal Tournament. They only had the occasional class with Miss Goodwitch and none of the theory classes like Oobleck's or Port's.

Tomorrow was supposed to be a special occasion though, the day Amity Colosseum would arrive in Vale and officially kick off the festival.

There wasn't a student in Beacon that didn't plan to watch.

* * *

The Vytal Festival was truly something to behold. Space had been set aside for the actual festival ground itself, not everything could fit on Amity after all. A section of Beacon had been dedicated for various stalls, games, and rides to be set up.

The speech had ended up not taking more than thirty minutes, most of that had been waiting for everyone to file in to the main hall. As soon as it was done the student body had been dismissed and free to use the rest of the day to train for themselves.

Beacon itself was thus abandoned, most of the students off enjoying the festivities. Team RWBY had gone together and spent half the day doing things before finally splitting off. Ruby dragging Weiss off to some weapons stalls and Blake taking the chance to 'sneak' off to a book stall.

Yang had wandered around a bit before running into her current source of entertainment. Jaune said something about Nora dragging Pyrrha and Ren off to do something and that left him free for the rest of the day.

For the most part they just walked around a bit, chatting about nothing specific. At some point Jaune caught her glancing at one of the games, immediately taking that as a challenge and swearing to win her the biggest prize he could.

She had giggled at the sentiment but hadn't expected much from it. Most of the prizes were small things and the bigger prizes were mostly just to draw attention to the stall itself, being impossible to actually win. That didn't stop Jaune from trying.

Yang had thought about telling him didn't have to, she was more than able to win on her own, but she couldn't bring herself to stop him. It was a little cliché, and over done if she were being honest, but there was something to be said about his insistence.

Jaune was a man of many talents, so long as he had some confidence in his actions. One of those talents just so happened to turn out to be carnival games.

"That's another win for you!" The man who ran the stall cheered. "Would you like to go again or will that be all?"

Jaune looked back to her for a moment before turning back towards the man. "How many more for the big one?" Jaune pointed to a large plushy of a Beowulf set off in the back.

"Only about three more, son." The man behind the stall grinned. "Course, you could take one of the lesser prizes for your girlie. I'm sure it would be good enough."

Jaune spared her a glance of consideration before a look of utter determination overtook him. Yang tried to tell him he didn't need to, she was already touched by the thought, but he turned back to the man.

"I'll go again."

Yang sighed as the man behind the counter grinned in victory. Most, if not all, the prizes were worth less than what they were spending trying to win them. Still, it was sweet in a way she wasn't used to.

She had been on a couple dates back at Signal, nothing serious of course, and a couple had even been to small fairs. Most of the boys had tried to win her something and settled on whatever they could get. A small stuffed animal or a bit of candy. Almost immediately after they'd try and get touchy.

They'd never do anything aggressive, her reputation preceded her and they knew she would be able to stop them even before her dad found out, but they always expected something after words.

Jaune was... different. He wasn't settling for the minimum, nor was he doing it to try and get lucky. It didn't feel like he was doing it for a reward.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" The man behind the counter boomed. "Better luck next time."

Jaune fell against the counter with a whimper. "I was so close!"

Yang hid her laugh behind her hand in an attempt to spare what pride Jaune had left.

The man behind the counter offered up a small yellow teddy bear that had clearly seen better days. It wasn't anywhere as grand as what Jaune had been trying to win her but he reached out and took it nonetheless. Turning and holding it up for her to take.

"Sorry." Jaune said. "Probably should have quit while I was ahead."

Yang leaned in and planted a kiss on his cheek before taking the bear and turning in an attempt to hide her growing blush. It took Jaune a couple seconds to catch up to her before offering his hand to take, which she did without hesitation, clutching the yellow bear to her chest with her free hand.

"Where did you get so good at carnival games?"

"There was a yearly fair in Ansel." Jaune replied. "Having seven sisters, and with dad being a huntsman out on missions part of the time, it was my job to win them something."

"As the man of the house?" Yang grinned.

"Yep." Jaune said. "Dad was home more often than not but, well, having eight kids was expensive. The kind of expensive only huntsman work can really pay for."

"Did you ever walk away with anything?"

"Well," Jaune blushed. "not really. I usually gave whatever I won to the rest, or if they already had one than Amber. She's the youngest."

Yang hummed and made a note to remember the name. "I guess that means I'll have to win you something."

Jaune's blush only grew. "You really don't ha-"

"Oh come on," Yang insisted. "It can't be that hard." She was a huntress after all, and a pretty good one at that. It wouldn't take her too long to win something, maybe even one up him and get something better than the teddy bear he had won her.

"By all means," Jaune grinned. "I'd love to see you try."

"Try?" Yang smirked. "Yang Xiao-Long does not try. I'm gonna win something so amazing it'll blow your socks off!"

Jaune didn't look like he believed her, but that was ok. She'd just have to prove him wrong.

* * *

"Ooo, so close!" The man behind the stall bombed. Not the same man from earlier of course, but Yang wanted to punch him regardless.

Yang growled under her breath. "Again!"

Jaune snickered behind her and she kept her eyes locked forward, much like she had the last two dozen attempts and failures. The man handed her three small metal rings before stepping back and allowing her to try once again.

It had seemed like a rather simple game, one she thought she would have been able to win. She thought it would have taken two, maybe three, tries at most. That was what she had told herself at first. After failing to win however, she had decided to try again. then again, and again.

At some point along the way It had become a matter of pride. She had said she would win, she had even called it easy. Now she was struggling to win anything at all.

Jaune had made it look so easy though.

Yang tossed the last ring, watching it fly over to one of the bottles and bound off the side. "Damn it!"

"That's tough, better l-"

"Again!" Yang slammed her lien down, reaching to take the rings from the man.

Jaune beat her to it, before tossing one out and managing to get it first try. Yang glared at him as he prepared to throw the second one, before he handed it to her.

"Here," Jaune held it in her hand. "try tossing it, not throwing, and give it a little more arch."

Yang reluctantly let him help her. As the ring left her hand it glided slowly towards its target, before landing lightly around the bottle.

Yang smiled brightly at that. They'd only have to land one more for one of the better prizes. Better as in bigger than the one he had won her.

She took the ring from his hands, determined to win it herself. It wouldn't be the same if he essentially did all the work. Yang focused on what he had said. Slowly she drew it back before tossing it lightly forward.

The ring glided down gracefully, before dinging off the side of the bottle and to the grass below.

Yang glared at the man, even as he handed her a small plushy of a puppy, about half the size as the bear she took back from Jaune.

Jaune's grin grew to shit eating proportions. "Can't be too hard huh?"

"Shut up." Yang looked away in an attempt to hide her blush. Jaune noticed but wisely chose not to say anything about it.

"Thank you though." Jaune said, holding up the plushy. "I shall love and cherish him."

She rolled her eyes and turned to walk away. A second later Jaune gripped her hand and pulled her back. She yelped in surprise, just before his lips met hers. It took a moment for her to realize what was happening, and she leaned into it.

A second later, he pulled away.

"Oh come on," Yang whined. "I was supposed to win you something, a stupid puppy plushy isn't good enough for that."

"Oh, I don't know." Jaune began walking ahead. "I think I still won."

"I'll find something to make up for it." Yang followed after him. "Maybe one of those hammer games or something."

"You know those are rigged right?"

Yang glared at him from the corner of her eyes before looking forward, fully intent on ignoring his presence. Aside from his hand in hers. She kept a firm hold of that.

That was also how she noticed something was wrong. One moment they had been walking side by side and the next he stopped. The sudden halt surprised her and she looked back in confusion.

Jaune was looking to something in front of them, eyes wide in what looked to be terror. Yang looked ahead, expecting to see some kind of monster.

All she saw were the crowds of people rushing between stalls. She looked back to Jaune.

"What's wrong?"

Jaune didn't say anything, keeping his eyes locked forward.

Yang looked forward and saw two civilians standing among the crowd, eyes locked in their direction. No, one civilian. The other held himself like a huntsmen. After a moment of staring they started to approach.

Yang felt Jaune pull back and had it not been for her hold on his hand she thought he might have bolted. It was strangely unlike him. Did he know the two people approaching them? Clearly, and judging by his reaction it wasn't a good thing.

She stepped a little closer to him, putting herself between him and whoever the two people were. Once the two had closed the distance, they stopped and simply stared at them.

Yang took the chance to get a better look at the two. The man carried himself with confidence and kept one hand on the sword attached to his waste, the other wrapped around the woman beside him. His hair was long and bright blonde and his eyes were a sharp blue. His face was covered in a trimmed blonde beard that completed the look.

The woman was far shorter than the man, only being around her own height. Her hair fell down her back in waves, also bright blonde. She hugged herself close to the man beside her. Her eyes were narrowed in their direction.

"Um, Jaune." Yang whispered, though she was certain the other two must have heard her. "Do you know them?"

The woman spoke, voice as cold as ice. "Yes Jaune, do you know us?"

"I… I," Jaune sputtered. A moment later he seemed to finally catch himself. "N-Nicholas, Juniper, this is Yang." He nodded to her. "My girlfriend."

Yang felt something within her flutter at the title.

"Yang," Jaune started. "This is Nicholas and Juniper Arc. My mom and dad."

* * *

**Author's Note: Gonna start this by saying I'm using the Coeur Al'Aran Arc family as my canon one here. He's a talented writer and really flushed it out beyond what many are fully capable of. Rest assured he has given permission for use so long as he is credited, accomplished by this note. **

**I will be making slight adjustments and detail changes here and there, mostly only things that I feel add to places they are lacking, though none of that will affect this story too much. **

**On other things. Le **_**gasp!**_ **This chapter is something unbelievable and completely undone before… Jaune called Yang his girlfriend! Surely they will get married soon!?**

**Hope y'all enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review.**

**Sincerely, SE **


	31. Chapter 31

**Authors Note: Don't forget to review the chapter once you're done and other than that, I hope you enjoy it. **

* * *

It was hard not to see the resemblance now that Yang was actually looking for it. Jaune took heavily after his dad, though the older Arc had longer hair and a trimmed beard giving him a far older appearance. His parents were also violently blonde.

She couldn't help but stare for a minute in awe, expecting Jaune to handle the actual talking. Only, once he was done with the basic introductions, he fell completely silent. His parents didn't seem too keen to offer him an out either and simply started at them in awkward silence.

"H-hi," Yang took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you." He offered out her hand. Neither of them took it and Yang began to sweat.

A minute passed and Yang was about to pull her hand away only for his dad to reach out and grab it.

"A pleasure," His voice was completely neutral, making it sound anything but. "I'm guessing you're a member of his team?"

"No, but our teams are close." Yang explained. "Both figuratively and literally, we're right across the hall from each other. I'm on team RWBY." She turned to Jaune, expecting him to step up but he looked down to avoid her eyes. "He's on team JNPR. One of the best in our year, right under mine of course."

The joke didn't seem to land well and Yang winced. This was going very poorly. Meeting the parents always went poorly, but this was turning into a disaster. They didn't seem displeased with her so much as just in a poor mood in general.

She could hazard a guess as to why.

"W-what brings you to the Beacon?" She knew the question was a mistake the second she asked it, if only due to the two's sudden glares at their son.

His mom was the one to speak and Yang immediately wished it could have been his dad. His dad's voice was neutral in a way that showed he was trying to stay calm. His mom sounded like she wanted to scream but was unable to due to being in public so instead it came out cold.

"We saw something rather interesting in the news recently, care to take a guess at what it might have been Jaune?"

"I-I uh-"

"You were attacked by terrorists!" His mother snapped.

"It was actually mostly Grimm once we got back to Vale." Jaune said. "It wasn't anything my team and I couldn't handle."

His mother didn't look impressed.

"We had to find out over the news." His dad said calmly, making Yang wince. That was bad. Ruby and she had called their dad before the news could cover the story, knowing how much parantes could worry. It seemed Jaune hadn't given them the same courtesy.

"I'm sorry," Jaune whispered. "but I knew how you'd react, I thought it would be better if you never found out."

"It was a choice then?" His dad asked.

"Yes."

"Good."

"What?" Jaune and his mother asked at the same time, his mother far more hysterically.

"It's good you at least made the choice not to." His father explained. "I would prefer that to ignorance."

"You're not helping!" His mother hissed. "That doesn't make it better!"

"Maybe you guys should take this inside Beacon, it'll be more private there." Yang said. "And maybe I should excuse myself, this sounds more like a family thing… I shouldn't be-"

"Nonsense!" Jaune's mother turned to her. "I wouldn't dream of sending you away. I have so much to ask you." The woman's smile grew vicious. Yang swallowed her fear.

"I would like to speak with Jaune," His father kept his eyes locked on Jaune. "alone."

His mother glared at her husband for a moment before covering it up with a smile as she turned back towards Yang.

"I could show you around Beacon?" Yang offered. She was hoping she would say no.

"I would love that."

_Damn it._

* * *

Jaune and his dad stepped away, leaving Yang alone with his mother. She wasn't nervous, not at all. She was calm, completely calm. Why wouldn't she be? She was only stuck in the middle of a family dispute that she really had no business being involved in. Oh, and Jaune had called her his girlfriend.

That last part shouldn't have mattered as much but it totally did. She would have been over the moon if it had been literally any other time, instead it had to come with this.

Jaune's mom looked to her expectantly.

"So... where would you like to start?" Yang asked.

"You know I don't really want a tour right?" She smiled softly. "That was just to get us alone."

She was completely calm. "Uh, Mrs. Arc I-"

"Please, call me Juniper." She said. "Mrs. Arc makes me feel so old."

"O-ok um," Yang rubbed the back of her neck. Mrs - Juniper was certainly not old. There were a few signs of age on her face, a crease or two, but she was incredibly beautiful for her age. Her sharp eyes reminded her so much of Jaune's so much that she could barely bring herself to look away from them. Her hair was vibrant and healthy and had a shine to it not too unlike her own.

Her body was one body even women ten years younger than her would have dreamed about having. This wasn't the woman she had expected to see birth and raise eight children. She didn't look nearly insane enough for that.

"What did you wanna talk about?"

"Why don't we take a seat, maybe get something to eat or drink?" Juniper smiled. "My treat."

Yang nodded. "That sounds great but I couldn't a-"

"Shush, it's no problem." She gestured towards the CCT mall. Yang nodded, allowing her to lead the way.

They didn't talk much on the way over. She had a few questions about Beacon or how the year was going but none of them were about Jaune. It seemed the important questions would only come once they were sat down and Yang was less likely to try and flee.

Not that she planned to anyways. This meeting was bound to happen at some point and she very much doubted Jaune's parents would simply ignore the fact she was a huntress. She just wasn't quite ready for it to come so soon.

In the end they went into a rather small looking shop that at first glance looked closed, most people off enjoying the festival and were thus eating carnival food and not making the stop at an actual restaurant.

The waiter came over to take their order, only drinks for now, but otherwise left them alone. Seemingly content to sit behind the counter and do nothing.

The pleasant conversation came to an end as Juniper's smile fell a little. "Jaune... how is he, really?"

"He's been doing great! He's a hard worker and has made a lot of improvement since the start of the year. He-"

"You know he had no training before coming here, don't you?" Juniper asked.

"Yes, I know." Yang winced slightly. "His partner also knows."

"His partner?" It was difficult to tell whether she was actually interested in the answer but Yang was more than willing to take the chance to avoid the conversation they were bound to have at some point.

"Pyrrha Nikos." Yang said, hoping the girl's reputation would precede her.

"The Mistrillian fighter?"

"He didn't know that when they met so she made sure they were partnered up." Yang snickered. "Pinned him to a tree with her spear."

Juniper hid her laughter behind her hand. "That does sound like Jaune."

"His other two team members are Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren." Yang said. "And he's the team leader."

"Oh," Juniper's face twisted in a mix of pride and concern. "And how has he done so far?"

"Uh, I'd say it's best to ask them about that." Yang said apologetically. "But I know he's come a long way from the start of the year."

"Somehow I don't imagine that being difficult." Juniper whispered. "He didn't leave so much as a letter when he left." Yang winced. "He just disappeared with the family sword."

Juniper's eyes began to fill with tears and for a moment Yang feared she might break down, but she didn't. "We had feared he was dead."

Yang focused her eyes on the table, refusing to look up.

"When we saw the news about The Breach… that he was alive…" Yang could only imagine.

It was all well and good to know he was alive, they had likely been over the moon at first, but once you started to think about it things began to fall apart. If he was alive, why hadn't he called? Or written a letter? Why had he simply disappeared?

"We booked the first flight we could. It took time, Nicholas was on a hunt at the time but once he came back we set out for Vale." Juniper explained. "We tried to call his scroll but…" She dabbed a napkin against her eye. "I'm sorry, I doubt you want to see a grown woman cry."

Yang reached a hand across the table. "No no, I understand." she swallowed. "That was… he shouldn't have done it like that. I'll talk to him, I promise."

It was highly unlikely Jaune had meant to cause so much pain when he left, but the fact remained that he had, and if nobody brought his attention to it he would likely never do anything about it. Not because he was cruel or mean but because he simply wouldn't notice. He was one of the densest people she had ever met.

"Thank you dear, that would mean more than you know." Juniper took a sip from her water, composing herself, as the smile came back a little stronger. "I'm glad to see Jaune has people to help him. He's never been the most…"

"Perceptive?" Yang filled in the blank spot for her.

Juniper's smile grew a little, feeling a little more honest. "You do know him then."

Yang snickered. "Believe me, I know. His partner was crushing on him hard for the first part of the year and he never noticed."

"That does sound just like him." Juniper laughed softly, it was a strangely comforting sound to hear. "Though, clearly that worked out for your benefit."

Yang blushed. "Oh well, uh, that was a little bit of a… thing." She chuckled nervously, rubbing her hand through her hair.

Juniper's smile grew vicious. "You will tell me the whole story, won't you?" Strangely enough, Yang got the feeling it was less a question than she made it out to be.

"Oh, I uh-"

"But first," She interrupted. "Why don't you tell me a bit about my boys team and what he's been up to. It's a mother's duty to know all of her son's embarrassing stories afterall."

That, Yang was far more willing to help with. Her own grin grew wide as she prepared to throw him under the bus.

_Sorry Jaune, shouldn't have left me alone with your mother. Bastard..._

* * *

Jaune ducked the sword before it could cut his head from his shoulders, before raising his shield just in time to stop the follow up strike. He went low, bringing his sword out and around towards his opponents legs.

Crocea Mors connected and aura cackled, then that leg's knee planted itself in his face forcing him back. It wasn't a fair trade by any means but it was still damage done.

"Not bad!" His father exclaimed. "Far better than I had expected!" He didn't stop his assault to talk, forcing the words out between the clash of steel and metal.

"I've been training!" Jaune caught another strike on his shield, then brought his sword down in an arch towards his father's shoulders. The older man pulled his sword back and caught the attack on the flat of his blade, pushing up and forcing Jaune to pull back or risk losing control of his weapon.

"I can tell." He raised one hand to warn Jaune the fight was over. "You have improved more than I ever thought possible, and in such a short space of time."

"I had excellent teachers."

"Beacon is known for hiring only the best." His father misunderstood.

"I was referring to my partner and Yang." Jaune explained. "If it weren't for them I'd never be where I am now."

His father hummed but said nothing, moving to a nearby bench to grab a bottle of water.

They come straight to the arena once they had gotten away from his mother and Yang. His father had said he wanted to see him in action, to see whether he had truly earned his place here or not. It was difficult to say for sure but Jaune was fairly certain he had managed to convince him.

He wasn't the weak untrained boy he had been when he left Ansel. Jaune sighed thinking of the argument he knew was coming. Worst of all was knowing that he deserved it. As horrible as it was to think, he hadn't even thought about his family after The Breach.

That wasn't entirely true actually, he had thought about his family, just not the one he had grown up with. His team was family now, even if they hadn't known each other for the longest time. He was confident that he could trust each of them with his life and he hoped they felt the same.

None of that would matter to his parents and sisters though. To them he had simply stolen something from them and then vanished. He had abandoned them and not given them a second thought. It bothered him that he had been so selfish in the past but in a way he was glad he had done it.

If he had told his family what he had planned to do they would have stopped him, and they had good reason to do so, but they would have kept him from coming to Beacon. Albeit out of love and concern for his well-being, but he still would have been kept from following his dreams.

He never would have met Ren and Nora, he never would have been partnered with Pyrrha Nikos and he never would have been trained by Yang. He wasn't willing to feel guilty about any of that and he refused to take it back. Knowing what he did now, he would have done it all over again.

That didn't stop the fact that he still felt bad for how he did it. For never telling them he was alive.

"I recognize that look on your face." His father offered him a bottle of water. "I saw that look a lot in my youth whenever I looked in the mirror."

"Why are you here?"

"Because we were afraid we'd lost you," His father explained. "We were afraid that you had gone off and died somewhere, but then we learned that you had not only gotten into Beacon but were involved in fighting terrorists." His father sighed. "We came here to take you home."

"I won't go." Jaune said simply. He thought of yelling it, of screaming how unfair it would have been to make him go, but he decided against it. Instead, he went with a simple statement of fact. He had no intention of leaving.

"I know, like I said, I know that look on your face." His father smiled. "That's the look of an Arc in love."

Jaune blushed. "Do you really have to say it like that?"

His father laughed. "I don't just mean that girl you had wrapped around you. The bond between a team can last a lifetime. I knew it well."

"My team… they're the best friends I've ever had. They're more like family than friends really, and it's only been a couple months." Jaune said before swallowing his fear. "You wont try and take me back to Ansel?"

"I might have, had you not proven yourself just now." His father smiled.

"Like I said, I had good teachers."

"I wasn't referring to the sparring, Son." His father explained. "Being a huntsman has never been about fighting ability or heroics, it's a dark path I wish you hadn't chosen… but you have and you have people who rely on you now. I won't come between that."

"Thank you da-"

"You have to talk to your mother about it though."

"A… are you sure you can't handle that?" Jaune begged.

His father laughed. "Not in a million years."

_Bastard…_

* * *

**Authors Note: So… coronavirus is doing stuff, hope yall are keeping safe. Proper hygiene and all that. It really makes you think about things when the whole world goes on lock down and the largest inconvenience to you is that the local Subway is closed… **

**All in all this chapter did things, as I'm sure you noticed. Plot happened and stuff. I wanna reiterate that I'm using Coeur Al'Aran's Arc family structure, fear not he has given permission so long as he is credited… so yeah, go read his stuff if you haven't already. It's WAY better than what I got… dont leave.**

**Hope y'all enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts, even if it's negative it helps me improve and get better. **

**Sincerely SE**


	32. Chapter 32

**Authors Note: This week has been exhausting and I can't really pinpoint why. I've just gotten home from work and been dead tired and I'm afraid that may reflect in the writing a bit, let me know your thoughts in the reviews once your done. **

* * *

The cheers of the crowd roared as they exited the Arena. They had done it, they'd won their first match! Yang felt the excitement run through her as the adrenaline slowly tapered off. She was sore and tired but relieved beyond belief.

She couldn't stop herself from smiling. Team RWBY had proven that they were in fact among the best, now all of Beacon would know. Her team were much the same, despite the fact that Blake and Weiss tried to hide it.

Blake actually had a smile on her face for once while Weiss was practically vibrating next to Ruby. Yang's sister was jumping and squealing.

"We won!" Ruby laughed. "I can't believe that we actually won! This is so awesome!" She reached over and pulled her partner into a hug.

"Ruby!" It was probably testament to just how happy she was that Weiss didn't try to pull away from her partner, at least, not as much as she normally would have.

Blake glared at her in a silent threat that, happy though she may be, she would not let Yang get away with that. A second later the glare slipped away and her smile returned.

The fight had been intense, though thankfully it wasn't as close as it could have been. Team RWBY had been ahead for most of the fight thanks to their better teamwork. That fact didn't stop them celebrating, nor the happiness they all felt.

"Now we have to decide who is going into the next round." Blake whispered to her, Ruby being told off by Weiss for such a public display of affection, she didn't miss that the Ice Queen wasn't as cold as usual.

"We can worry about that later. For now, we celebrate!" Yang howled. "Team RWBY is gonna win this thing!"

"Don't count us out just yet." A voice said from behind her. "We've still got a couple tricks up our sleeves."

"Pyrrha is hardly a trick up your sleeve." Yang turned around to see Jaune. He smiled back at her. Pyrrha blushed slightly, rubbing a hand against her neck.

"I'll have you know I am an excellent strategist."

"Throwing Pyrrha at them doesn't count as a strategy." Yang chuckled. "No matter how effective it is."

"I'm really not tha-"

"Lies! It's totally a strategy!" Nora followed after Jaune.

"We won!" Ren stepped back from his partner just in time for Ruby to slam into Nora with semblance enhanced speed, knocking them both onto the ground.

Jaune turned away, ignoring Nora's cries of treason and betrayal, and walking over to Yang.

"You did great out there, both the team and you." Jaune said. "You were amazing."

"Charmer," Yang smirked. "Are you trying to win me over for something?"

"That depends," He replied. "Is it working?"

Yang reached out and pulled him into a short kiss, ignoring the groans and complaints from their teams.

She pulled away a second later. "I think so."

"Ugh, get a room you two." Ruby smiled to show she was teasing, a fact that Yang didn't know whether she liked or not. She was glad Ruby felt comfortable enough to tease, that didn't mean she wanted to be the target. Retaliation would be the only way to break even.

"Preferably not ours." Weiss glared at them to show it wasn't a recommendation.

Weiss put herself in the line of fire.

"Don't worry," Yang's smile grew. "I wouldn't want to encroach on your alone time with Ruby."

Ruby turned beat red and shrunk back, Weiss stammered but was unable to speak for a second. Nora was laughing up a storm while Blake simply shook her head.

"Xiao Long!" Weiss pointed a single finger at her. "That is not appropriate!"

"Don't worry Weiss," She waved with her hand. "I wont judge."

"Xiao Long!"

"Yaaaaaang!"

"Arc!" Weiss snapped. "Stop her!"

Yang looked to him, raising one eyebrow.

He seemed just as confused as her. "What do you expect me to do?"

"I don't know!" Weiss yelled. "Embarrass her!"

Yang smirked at Jaune, waiting for his attempt.

"And how would you propose I do that?" He rolled his eyes. "Have you met Yang?"

"Hey!"

"I suppose that's fair." Weiss sighed.

"Believe me, I would if I could." Jaune smiled. "It would be a useful trick to have."

Yang rolled her eyes. "If you two are done." She paused a moment and waited for them to nod. "We have to go celebrate our teams making it into the doubles."

Jaune looked confused. "But our team hasn't even fought yet."

"Your team has Pyrrha Nikos, it would be more surprising if you lost." Said girl's blush turned a shade darker.

"I'm really not th-"

"Fair enough." Jaune turned to smile at Pyrrha. "You really are too nice Pyr, you could probably win the match by yourself." She made to interrupt but he continued before she could. "With us by your side, I almost feel bad for the other team."

"Almost." Yang reiterated. "But if you want we can wait until you've had your fight." She groaned when they nodded their heads in approval. "You are all the definition of the word party poopers."

"The wait will make it even better." Jaune shrugged his shoulders.

"I doubt that but I'll pretend." Yang rolled her eyes once more. "I guess we should go find our seats." She gestured back towards the bleachers. "No telling whether we'll find any good ones."

"You guys go ahead, I need to do something real quick." Jaune stepped away from them.

"Uh actually, I needed to talk with you about something if you don't mind me tagging along." Yang waited for him to nod before separating from the group. Ruby promised she'd save them some seats, Nora promised they'd be next to each other so they could 'make kissy-face'.

Jaune waited for their teams to be gone before speaking.

"What's up?"

"You're going to talk to your parents, right?" He looked confused by the question but nodded. "Have you introduced them to your team yet?"

"I-uh… no, no I haven't yet." Jaune sighed. "I didn't really plan on doing it."

It was Yang's turn to look confused. "Why wouldn't y-"

"Because I was actually gonna ask them to leave."

Jaune refused to meet her eyes.

"Why?"

Jaune stayed silent for a moment before answering.

"I… I'm not on the best of terms with them, Yang." Jaune's voice was complicated. "I'd prefer not to mix my old life with my new one."

"So you're just gonna send them away when they came here to make sure you're safe?" She smiled, not meaning for him to take it seriously.

"That's exactly what I plan to do." He kept his eyes closed.

"Jaune… They're your family-"

"And they wanted to stop me from coming to Beacon!" His eyes snapped open as he yelled. "If they had had their way then I never would have met my team! My friends! I never would have met you!" She tried to interrupt but he continued before she could. "They wanted to stop me from following my dreams because they didn't think I was ready, I proved them wrong! I went to Beacon, I trained and I improved. I can call myself a Huntsman, no thanks to them!"

He was silent for a moment before the anger wore off and he realized exactly what he had said.

"Yang, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have-" Jaune sighed. "It's just… I'm not ready to forgive them, not yet. They still think I should have stayed away from Beacon and I just… I can't let that go."

Yang reached out and pulled him into a hug. "Don't worry, I get it." She whispered. "They didn't support you and that stings but… Jaune, they're your family." She pushed him away slightly, enough to look him in the eyes. "They were worried about you, when you came to Beacon you were…"

"Useless?"

"Untrained," Yang slapped his arm. "You're not useless, you've never been useless." Jaune forced a smile but it was clear he didn't believe her. "You're trying to separate your old life from your new one, but… they're the same thing. No matter what you do you're still gonna be the son of Nicholas and Juniper Arc." She paused for a moment before continuing. "But you're also the leader of team JNPR, you're a huntsmen in-training and boyfriend of Yang Xiao Long." She blushed slightly.

Jaune's smile seemed to brighten slightly. "One of those sounds better than the rest."

"Your team isn't that great." She leaned forward, planting a chaste kiss on his lips before pulling away. "I'm not saying to forget what they tried to do, just dont push them away over 'll regret it.

Jaune coughed into his fist in an attempt to hide his blush, it was adorable and she couldn't help but laugh, making it even worse for him.

"Go talk to your family. Introduce them to your team, I know for a fact Pyrrha and Nora would love it."

Jaune took a deep breath. "I'll go find Pyrrha. Thanks Yang."

* * *

"I'm afraid it's beyond our worst estimates." Ironwood stated. "The information we've gleaned from Torchwicks Scroll hints at something far larger than anything we thought possible, and sooner than we thought."

"Any specifics?" Ozpin leaned back in his chair. "Anything we could use to root out the Queen?"

"Nothing solid yet." Ironwood grumbled. "I had my Specialists close in on what we knew the second we cracked his encryption. The details lead us to several safehouses and storing sites both in and outside the walls, most were abandoned however."

"Most?"

Ironwood grinned. "The raids still turned over a large amount of supplies, it's our current theory that these were set up as dead drops for some future operations, but very few actual guards were found." He explained. "Of the few we have gathered we learned about a couple more targets, sadly those were completely empty by the time we got there."

"They knew you were coming after the first wave of raids. How interesting."

"Concerning more like." Glynda corrected. "If they were able to respond so quickly it's very possible you have been compromised James."

Ozpin hummed but made no comment.

"That was one of my fears, yes." Ironwood admitted. "But after further investigation we believe the leak to be a software one. Our top engineers are looking into it."

Either result would be disastrous for them. Traitors were dangerous not only because of the information they could leake but the difficulty of finding them without hurting the trust of those still loyal. Traitors and infiltrators often made friends with the group they were betraying in order to build their cover story, an added bonus of that was the potential for allies in case of danger.

Ozpin doubted many of the Atlesian soldiers would turn on them however. The soldiers of Atlas were loyal to their country, but above that, these were the General's best men. The ones he trusted enough to drag across the world to face an enemy unlike anything they could imagine.

Still, traitors could be dealt with, as much as the thought sickened him. Computer viruses were different. They could lie dormant or undetected until they had already done their job. Even with their attention drawn it was possible they wouldn't find anything in time, and if the computer systems of Atlas had been compromised that meant most of their forces would be as well. The robotic ones at least.

Their biggest asset may have already been swept from under them and they hadn't even noticed.

"It seems we must take action." Ozpin sighed as he picked up his mug, taking a long drink before setting it back down. "We will go ahead with the transfer."

"You've made your choice then?" The General asked. "I cant convince you to reconsider?"

''I'm afraid not James." Ozpin replied. "Given recent developments I believe we have no better options available."

"She's strong, and her loyalty is almost certain but…" Glynda pinched her nose. "It feels wrong to bring one so young into this."

"I know and I wish there were another option but we simply can't leave the power with Amber." Ozpin sighed. "Her team is strong and she will be well protected."

"Then it seems the discussion is over." Glynda sighed. "Would you like me to make the call?"

"If you would." Ozpin stood from his desk, taking a step towards a bookshelf off to the side where he could refill his mug. He had the feeling he would be needing it for the conversation to come.

"Her family won't like this."

"Leave them to me, Glynda." Ozpin sighed. "I owe them that much."

* * *

"This is Nora and her partner Ren."

"It's a pleasure to meet ya!" Nora shook Nicholas' hand.

"Please, the pleasure is all ours." Juniper smiled brightly. "We're so glad to see Jaune has made so many friends at Beacon. We had been worried, he was never the most popular back in Ansel."

"Mooooom~" Jaune whined.

"Oh believe me, we know!" Nora smiled, showing she was teasing. "Lucky enough for him he got me on his team, I'm super good at making friends!"

Ren made a so-so motion with his hands behind Nora and Jaune's parents smiled at each other.

The introductions had gone well. Jaune's mother had been overjoyed to meet her son's friends, just being included in his life again after so long seemed to make her happy.

His father looked happy that his wife was happy and seemed to be content with his son's team, though whether that was because of who they were as people or because of them all being strong enough to stand up for Jaune if he needed it was anybody's guess.

Still, it was an improvement and Yang was happy to have had a part in it. Jaune was currently talking with Juniper and Pyrrha, the latter of which was blushing at something Juniper had said while Jaune seemed to be denying it.

It was a sweet scene, especially given what she knew about Jaune's opinion of his family. It was clear there was still an issue, the way he still tended to refer to them as Juniper and Nicholas when talking to them, or the awkward silences in between nobody talking.

Still, it was progress. Nora pulled Pyrrha and Jaune into a hug, or a tackle depending on how you defined Nora's hugs, and the group laughed.

A beeping sound broke through the laughter and Yang reached for her scroll. She'd considered denying the call until she saw who it was. Ruby noticed her step away and started to step towards her for a moment before she held up the scroll. Her sister nodded and went back to her conversation with Nicholas and the rest of team RWBY

Once Yang was in a somewhat quieter place, a reasonably abandoned stairwell, she answered.

"_Hello Miss Xiao Long."_

"Miss Goodwitch, is something wrong?"

* * *

**Author's Note: Welp...wonder what that ending could be about. **

**The ending part of this chapter was a real bitch to write, not the literal ending lines but the build up to it, and I'm still not all that confident in the actual wording and flow but we'll see how yall feel. **

**A number of people have asked how far I plan to take the story in terms of volume and to them I say wait and see. Sorry about the anti-climactic answer there but I don't wanna reveal anything until a certain point. Until then you'll just have to be along for the ride.**

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter and, even if you didn't, I encourage you to review. It helps me to improve and make this story as well as others better in the future. **

**Sincerely SE**


	33. Chapter 33

**Authors Note: Don't forget to leave a review at the end! **

* * *

Magic was real. That sounded like such a crazy thing to understand, such an impossible thing that only existed in fairy tales, and yet she was being told it was real. Not only that but that the Grimm were guided by something, someone. That there was a secret war being waged against a foe as old as humanity itself.

She thought she should have felt scared, or frightened, or maybe in disbelief in what she was being told. Instead, she felt numb. She didn't feel anything at that moment. There was a girl that lay dying under Beacon with a power somebody was apparently ready to kill for.

"I… I don't know what to say." Yang stammered. "I… it's hard to believe."

"I am aware of how absurd it sounds, Miss Xiao Long." Ozpin leaned back in his chair. "But everything I have told you is the truth."

Despite a lack of immediate proof, Yang was inclined to believe him. She liked to think she wasn't an idiot and that she was a reasonable person.

The point of a lie was to mislead somebody or to trick them, in order to do that the lie had to be believable. Nobody would believe in magic and an evil group waging a war against humanity and that somehow made it more believable.

She had respect for the Headmaster, from what she knew he was a good man and her uncle spoke well of him, but she had never met the man personally. Miss Goodwitch stood a little off to the side of him and had made no effort to speak since she entered. Yang had immense respect for her, maybe it was due to the constant presence or the way she carried herself but she felt that she could trust her.

And she seemed to believe what Ozpin was saying, at least enough to not speak up. It was difficult for her to imagine Miss Goodwitch trying to pull a prank on anyone, let alone a student. She was too professional for that.

Yang swallowed hard. That only made her feel worse. By all accounts what they were saying should have been a joke or some kind of stupid thing they did to every student but it wasn't.

"I… why tell me this?" Her voice was weak, a whisper only audible due to the silence. Despite the fact she asked the question she felt she already knew the answer. It was obvious what they wanted. A power that only young females could receive.

"We need to transfer the Fall Maiden powers to somebody to keep them from whoever attacked Amber." Ozpin explained. "You are the best candidate."

Despite that she saw it coming it still knocked the air from her lungs.

"We will not force your hand of course, there are others but none with the same chance of success. You may deny us if you so wish."

And knowingly force the problem onto somebody else? Who would the next person be? Pyrrha was the obvious choice.

"Why me?" Yang asked.

"You are a talented huntress with a powerful semblance," Ozpin said. "But that alone isn't enough. You are skilled, but there are better." Pyrrha he meant. "Beyond you is your team. Team RWBY is the best of its year and one of the best Beacon has to offer, and then there is your ties to team JNPR." Ozpin sighed. "We believed that anonymity would aid Amber in staying hidden but… it merely made her all the easier to be stricken down. With two teams of talented hunters at your back I believe you would be protected beyond what we ourselves could guarantee."

"When you say ties to-"

"Your relationship with Mr. Arc, yes."

Yang felt like she should have been embarrassed, the teachers, and even the headmaster, had apparently been talking about her relationship. In the end she wasn't however. Mostly she felt cold.

"Why… why not his partner?" Yang asked. "Why not Pyrrha?"

"Miss Nikos is an incredibly gifted individual, one with immense skill and a powerful semblance." Ozpin stated. "A semblance that is now known to our enemies."

He was referring to their mission to Mountain Glenn. Pyrrha had used her semblance against some of the Paladins there, or so Jaune had told her. It had apparently allowed them to defeat multiple Paladins at once but that also meant that whoever was working for Salem knew about it.

"I… I need some time to think about this."

"Of course, take all the time you need."

* * *

Ozpin sighed as Glynda led her out of his office and back to her friends below. For not the first time he was forced to contemplate whether he had made the right choice or not. It pained him to have to think in such morbid action, when this person dies how will it benefit us? How can we make this loss our gain?

He had many regrets in his existence, the nature of the Maiden's was certainly one of them. Had he taken more care the first time, or planned batter maybe he wouldn't have doomed so many.

Amber was only his most recent failure, and one he regretted immensely. She was a bright young girl, intelligent and curious in ways most were not. Her drive to learn, understand, and master the Maiden abilities had created a woman who might have been able to help turn the tide against Salem.

Then she had been struck down and part of her powers stripped from her.

Ozpin raised his mug to his lips and took a drink, wishing that it contained something stronger than simple coffee.

A sound like wings flapping caused the immortal wizard to wince. He had allowed himself to become distracted in thought and had failed to notice he was not alone, and judging by the silence, they hadn't been alone for their conversation either.

"Qrow," Ozpin sighed and rose from his chair. "I hadn't expected to see you for a few da-"

"Is this a joke, Ozpin?" Cold, that was the only word Ozpin could think to describe the sound of Qrow's voice. "It's some kind of trick or test, right?"

"It is not a trick," Ozpin refused to look behind him, unable to look Qrow in the eyes. "Your niece is to be the Fall Maiden, if she will accept of course."

A sound like shifting gears rang out through the silence and Ozpin looked over his shoulder, seeing that he had drawn his weapon.

"No, not her." Qrow stated with a finality that there would be no argument. "The Nikos girl, or Schnee, or that second year girl. Not her!" Any sense of calm was gone as the man raised his voice. "Anybody but her!"

Ozpin sighed. "I'm afraid the decision has already been made, Old friend." There was a shuffling sound behind him and Ozpin turned, pulling his cain up to block the strike before it could land.

"_Old friend_," Qrow spat the word like an insult. "Everything I've done for you, everything I've given up for you and your cause, I've never asked for anything!"

It was true. Of all the assets at his disposal, Qrow had been the most steadfast, the most reliable, and above all the most trusted. It pained him greatly to see that trust broken in the man's eyes.

"Choose. Somebody. Else."

"No."

"I won't let her die alone like Amber!" Qrow pushed his blade into Ozpin's cane, forcing him back slightly.

"She won't." Ozpin would make sure of it. He refused to let another promising young woman die because of the power so cruelly thrown upon them, even if he was the one responsible for it. "The reason I chose her is because she won't be alone." Ozpin pushed back slightly, enough that he was able to step away and out of the sword's arc as it cut down, lodging into his desk.

"I dont care!" Qrow withdrew it from the decades old desk with ease. "I won't let you take her!"

"And what will you do? Kill me and steal her away before we can force it on her?" Ozpin ducked under a strike, again stepping back. "The choice is her's to make, not ours and certainly not yours."

"There's no choice to make!" Qrow lunged forward but the strike was sloppy and he was able to bat it away with ease, again stepping back. "She'll do the selfless thing because it protects the people she cares about, but you knew that already!"

Ozpin didn't reply and Qrow howled with rage.

"You're manipulating her!" Ozpin ducked his head at the words, shame welling up inside.

"We chose her because she will never be alone." Ozpin attempted to explain. "Her friends, her family, they will always be there to aid her and her loyalty is unquestioned."

"Loyalty to you?" Qrow stepped forward slashing downward at his shoulder. He attempted to step back but found himself slipping slightly and only barely missing the blade. It left him open and Qrow attempted to follow up his strike.

Ozpin grit his teeth as he brought his cane up under his friend's jaw, cracking his head back and buying him the time he needed to step away.

"No, not loyalty to me." Ozpin ducked under the man's strike. "Loyalty to her sister, loyalty to her team, loyalty to her family. She would not forsake any one of those, even if her life were in danger. She would rather die than join Salem."

"Don't say that like it's a good thing!" Qrow growled but made to move to strike.

"She will be safe here, I promise." Ozpin tapped his cane on the ground.

"Amber wasn't safe!" Qrow's hands shook. "She had years to train with the maiden powers, years to perfect her fighting and she was killed the same as anyone else! What makes Yang safer!?"

"You are here, for one." Ozpin spoke softly, attempting to calm the man before him. "And then there is her team, as well as their sister team. Working with them you would be more th-"

"You didn't even talk to me first! You coward! You bet-" Qrow turned and started stepping towards the window. "Raven was right."

His mind raced as he tried to think of what to say, of what might help the man in pain before him, but there was nothing. Nothing he could do would make things right and they both knew it.

Despite that fact, Qrow paused before leaving, giving him the opportunity to speak. Maybe it was trust, or hope that Ozpin would back down, but he couldn't. No matter how much he wished it otherwise a choice had to be made and he had to think of the future.

Of the generation to come.

"I'm sorry."

"No, you aren't."

Ozpin's head dipped as Qrow transformed and disappeared out into the sky. He only hoped he made the right choice.

* * *

Yang had made a point of not heading back to the room for as long as possible. Taking the long route back and then deciding to head to the cafeteria instead, only to change her mind and go to the sparing rooms. Anything to keep her from having to see her team.

They would have been able to tell something was wrong the second they saw her and she just wasn't ready to answer those kinds of questions. She needed time to think about what the headmaster had said.

She had spent hours thinking on it but the more she tried the more the decision became clouded in her head. She'd spent so long wondering in fact that the sun had already set and it was rapidly getting dark.

She had decided to make an attempt to head back to her room, she had even made it to the building before chickening out and heading to the roof instead. She hated herself for it but couldn't put off finding an answer.

That was where Jaune had found her, sitting all alone on top of the dorms roof. He didn't say anything as he approached and she didn't make any attempt to stand, instead, he sat next to her and pulled her in slightly.

"I came up here to be alone you know." She kept her voice low.

"I figured," Jaune squeezed her closer to his side. "I also figured that whatever it was, you shouldn't be alone."

Yang glared at him but found her body relaxing into his before she could stop it.

"So I suppose you want to know what happe-"

"Not really, no." Jaune shrugged his shoulders.

"Huh?"

Jaune gave a light laugh at her confusion. "Not expecting that?"

"You… dont wanna even ask?"

"Of course I do," Jaune rolled his eyes. "But first I wanna try and make you feel better." He pointed one finger up and tapped her nose. "I trust you to tell me when you're ready, but for now I just wanna help."

Yang found herself speechless but quickly looked away, attempting to hide her blush. Judging from the shaking she could feel from his body she had failed in that regard.

"Your team was worried, you know." He said. "Ruby came to integrate me after the first couple hours."

"Oh?"

"She accused me of corrupting you." Jaune's face was a mix between frustration and a pout Yang couldn't help but laugh at. "Nora said that wasn't fair. If anything, you corrupted me."

"Hey!"

It was his turn to laugh and she hit his arm in protest, hard enough to cause Aura to flare. He fell backwards from the force, though he didn't stop laughing the whole time. Eventually she joined him in his laughter, falling back to lay down beside him. They stayed there for a few minutes, simply watching the stars slowly become more visible in the night sky.

It felt like one of the stories she used to read to Ruby when she was getting ready to go to bed. It was strangely magical and she never wanted it to end. Eventually however, the real world caught up with them.

"We should probably get going." He made to get up but she pulled him down slightly.

"No just…" She bit her lip." A few more minutes… please?"

Jaune looked concerned but layed back down, nudging her with his shoulder slightly.

"We can stay up here as long as you need."

She knew that but at that moment she didn't care. Having him so close to her while they looked up at the stars. The turmoil that had been brewing since Ozpin had pulled her to his office had subsided because of Jaune.

The night was perfect and it felt like something she would never forget. The way she felt, the way her body felt like it molded to his. The warmth of him beneath her fingers, even as the air began to cool. She closed her eyes and focused on every small detail she could. She was determined to make it a memory unlike any other.

She felt like she couldn't possibly forget it.

* * *

**Author's note: All right, we get that clash with Qrow that was definitely coming. Though, perhaps a bit sooner than even Ozpin expected. I'm actually a bit concerned that section might land poorly or be seen negatively but… we'll see. **

**Reading the reviews I ran into something that cracked me up. "Why yes, I would like a fall of beacon, this time banana flavored instead of strawberry."**

**I don't know why but that still makes me laugh, but I will neither confirm nor deny whether it has any merit. You'll simply have to keep reading.**

**On an unrelated note I've started drafting ideas for a new story and its going… it's certainly going. It should be an interesting idea but I just hope it can follow this story up well. This one has been way more popular than I ever thought. Over 100K views and hundreds of followers and favorites! I know, not much but I'm still proud and I'm glad so many of you seem to be enjoying it. **

**As always, I hope you enjoyed and I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts. Whether you enjoyed it or not, any and all criticisms help me to improve and make all future works better.**

**Sincerely SE**


	34. Chapter 34

**Author Notes: Apologies for the late upload, ran into an issue with an editor need some more time. Thought it best to wait and let him get a read before continuing with upload. Shouldn't be a trend. **

**Dont forget to review when your done!**

* * *

She couldn't say how long they had sat there. They had sat there talking for hours, mostly about his sisters and what they were like, and even then it felt like it wasn't long enough. How he couldn't wait for her to meet them and how much they would love her… after their initial grilling of her. It gave her something to look forward to.

Meeting his sisters, just thinking about it brought her mind back to Ozpin's offer. She wanted to meet the rest of Jaune's family, she wanted to see Ansel where he grew up. She wanted to go on dates and adventures with him and her team. She wanted to live a life after Beacon.

She felt the tears well up in her eyes.

Above everything else, she wanted to protect her friends. Somebody was coming for the Maiden powers. She didn't know who or when but they would come. If she refused, Ozpin would go to somebody else.

Somebody who was apparently less qualified. It wasn't difficult to guess who that somebody was, Pyrrha being the obvious choice, but then… she was the obvious first choice, wasn't she? As much as she hated it, she would be willing to let Pyrrha take the chance. She was strong and had a capable team, and team RWBY would be there to help.

What if it wasn't her though? What if the next choice was Weiss? Or Blake?

What if it was Ruby?

If she took his offer however… at least she would be able to protect them. Her hand shook slightly. Jaune noticed and grabbed hers in his. She couldn't bear to look up at him, instead she kept her face resting against his side. He didn't say anything but pulled her closer.

Yang took a deep breath to try and steady her nerves. Ozpin had stressed the importance of keeping it a secret but… she needed somebody to talk to. It felt like it should have been an easy choice, the selfless thing to do was to accept but… she didn't want to do the right thing. She wanted things to stay as they were.

"Jaune I… I need to tell you something." Yang sat up, after a few seconds he did the same.

"You don't have t-" She pulled him towards her, placing her lips on his. The sensation was different than what she had expected. It felt… sad in a way their other kisses hadn't been. She pulled away in disappointment.

"You mean a lot to me Jaune." He was dazed and unable to speak. "I want you to know that."

After a moment he seemed to regain his bearings. "What brought that on?"

Yang stood and offered him a hand, pulling him to his feet and drawing him in for another kiss. One that felt just as bitter. She lowered her head to hide the tears she could feel welling up in her eyes.

"I just need you to know that."

She wanted to explain everything to him, Salem, the secret war, the Maiden powers. She wanted to rant and rave about how it wasn't fair she had been chosen for such a thing, but she couldn't bring herself to do it.

Not because Ozpin had asked her to keep it a secret but because she hadn't even told her own team yet. She knew what she had to do.

She turned away from him a second later, pretending she couldn't see the concern on his face. Stepping towards the stairwell and back into the building. Once she was out of sight she pulled up her scroll, pulling up the number the headmaster had given her to contact.

_When can we meet?_

* * *

She didn't have to wait long for his response and she found herself walking towards the tower. A short walk led her to the base of the tower where Miss Goodwitch was waiting for her. The two didn't speak on the elevator ride up and before she knew it she was standing back in the Headmasters office.

"I have to say, I hadn't expected to hear back from you so soon."

Yang swallowed. "I-I haven't decided… yet." The headmaster leaned back in his chair but said nothing else. "I had something to ask."

"What is it you wish to know?"

"If I say no, who will you go to next?"

Ozpin stared at her, remaining silent for a moment.

"I can't tell you that." It was the answer she had expected, but it disappointed her all the same.

"Why not?" Yang whispered. "Because you're afraid I'll tell whoever is after the powers?"

"Of course not, discretion is key but your motivations are not in question. They never have been, if they were you would not be sitting before me now." Ozpin leaned forward, hiding his lower face behind his hands as he leaned on them. "It wouldn't be fair to you."

It took Yang a moment to process that, her confusion was clearly evident on her face.

"I wish this were not necessary, in a better world it wouldn't be, but it is." He explained. "One thing I refuse to do, however, is force somebody to choose something they don't want."

"You're trying to be kind…" Yang's shoulders sagged slightly. "You don't want me to make a choice I might regret, only because I want to save somebody else."

"I would rather not guilt you into it." Ozpin smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. "I am not trying to manipulate you."

"You already have," She said, surprising both the Headmaster and herself. "By asking me at all you've guilted me into it. Intentional or not." The headmaster shut his eyes as she continued. "The next choice is somebody on my team, isn't it?"

The headmaster didn't speak, he didn't have to.

She felt tears sting at her eyes. "Why not Pyrrha? Or one of the older years? Why us?!" She tried to pull in her emotion but was unable.

"Miss Nikos lost to Roman Torchwick." The headmaster looked up to her, his face the picture of neutrality. His eyes betrayed his thoughts however. "Roman was once a talented huntsman, with a promising future ahead of him… but he is nothing compared to what came for Amber, what will come for anyone who accepts the Maiden power."

"Miss Nikos was unable to beat somebody who is a known quantity, while her biggest asset, her semblance, has been revealed. I assure you our enemy now knows."

Yang's heart ached. She knew she should say no, she wanted to, but if she did. She knew whoever was next would say yes.

Ruby would jump at the chance to save people, the risk be damned. So long as she could help a single innocent person, she would consider the sacrifice not in vain, never stopping to think about those she would hurt in the process. There was too much of Summer in her.

Yang couldn't bare the thought of burying her little sister

Weiss would likely say yes as well. Despite how she often acted, she truly cared for her team. She had spent years without friends or family and now she had both in the form of them. Yang knew she would do anything to try and keep it. She always acted like the world sat on her shoulders, like burden and responsibility was something only she could deal with.

Blake might say no, so long as she didn't think the White Fang were involved. In fact, she was probably a guaranteed no, if only because of how paranoid she could be… but she was also extremely unlikely to be chosen. Her past was already bad enough, having worked for terrorists, but if said terrorists turned out to have ties to Salem?

No matter how much the Headmaster trusted her now, he couldn't afford that risk when he knew her loyalties could be changed so easily.

Yang felt the tears well up as her hand began to shake. She truly believed the headmaster was trying to do what he thought was right, and maybe it was, but she found herself stuck in the middle.

"What… what will happen to me? When I say yes?"

"If you say yes we will begin the transfer immediately." Ozpin sighed. "If all goes well you would be perfectly fine come tomorrow morning or late afternoon."

"If?"

"This technology is untested. The side effects could be…" Ozpin struggled to find the word, before giving up with a sigh. "We don't know if you would be yourself after."

Yang felt the air be knocked from her chest. She tried to speak but choked on the words.

"The hope is you would gain the powers and nothing else, but…" Ozpin took a deep breath. "Aura is the manifestation of the soul… we have no idea what kind of effect that could have. You may be perfectly fine, or you may gain some memories of Amber's, or… she might take your place."

She tried to form a response but was unable. She wanted to say no, gods how she wanted to say no, but… she thought of her team having to make the same choice. She couldn't bear to imagine any member of team RWBY not being themselves anymore.

Yang balled up her fists in an attempt to stop them from shaking.

She had only just started dating Jaune. Not twenty four hours ago her biggest concern had been the tournament. She tried to laugh but it came out bitter. Now she wouldn't even be able to compete in it.

"Miss Xiao Long," To her surprise, it was Miss Goodwitch who spoke. "You don't have to say yes and you certainly don't have to decide now." She glanced at the headmaster, some unspoken words going between them before she turned back. To her surprise the women's normally strict glare was a soft look, one that made Yang want to break down then and there. "Talk with your team see wh-"

"No," Yang refused to meet the teachers eyes as she cut her off. "I know what they'd say." They'd want her to say no, to be safe and not take a risk like this… and then each of them would take it when offered.

She wanted to scream about how unfair it was. In the end, she tried to take comfort in the idea that she would be helping to keep them safe.

* * *

Qrow knocked back his drink, taking one last long drink before his ride was here. It had been a bitch to contact her and she just had to wait for him to be in the middle of a drink, didn't she?

The red portal flicked to life in front of him but no one stepped through. Qrow sighed, setting his empty glass down and leaving some lien as a tip for the waitress with the short skirt. Stepping through the portal the first thing he noticed was the lack of feeling. One moment he was in a bar in Vale, the next he was somewhere in Mistral. The cleaner air assualting his nose, along with a slight smell of ash.

The tribe had been busy latley.

Raven glared at him but said nothing, turning her back and making for the main tent. The crowd that formed around them would have had him concerned, had they not all stayed a good fifteen feet away from the Branwen twins.

By the time they reached the center, the entire tribe must have been folowing them. Qrow took a swig from his flask.

Raven sent a glare at the bandit who acted as a guard to her tent, causing him to scurry away in fear, most of the crowd following him lest they anger their leader.

Qrow scoffed at the title his sister claimed.

She turned back around and gestured for him to follow her inside. Qrow did so in silence.

The inside of her tent was a mess, lacking any theme or design. Carpets and tapestries of varying colours and designs adorned the floor and edges. Raven stood by her bed, eyes fixed on him as he stepped though.

"This had better be good." Her words were cold. "I won't stand for you disru-"

"Yang is going to be the next Fall Maiden."

Raven's jaw snapped shut, her eyes going wide in the only look of surprise Qrow could recall seeing on her face since Tai had proposed to her. She looked utterly lost for words.

"Ozpin told her about Salem and the Maidens, about the war, and about what happened to Amber." He spared a second to gauge his sister's facial expression, which, while still in shock, held no signs of confusion. How she had found out about Amber he didn't know, but he appreciated that he wouldn't have to explain it.

"And you let him?" Raven reigned in her emotions, adopting a neutral expression.

"He didn't exactly ask for my opinion!"

"If you had listened to me-" She snapped her mouth closed, cutting the argument off before it could form. Funny that, since she would have no better opportunity to mock him than right now. She had been proven right. He had expected ehr to rub his nose in it.

"Did you try to stop her?" Qrow said nothing. "Of course you didn't, you just ran here as fast as you could. Why then? Why come here?"

"Because I need to ask you a favour."

"Why would I ever do a favour for you?"

"Not for me, for Yang." Again, he tried to get a read on his sister's facial expression. This time it was neutral, unnaturally so. "She still has her one." Raven nodded once but gave no other response. "Then I'm calling it in for her."

Raven seemed to consider his words for a moment, a moment in which he wasn't sure whether she was going to draw her weapon and attack or simply shut him down.

"What did you have in mind?"

Her words surprised him somewhat, but he dared to hope.

* * *

Yang's eyes focused on the second pod, or more appropriately, the girl inside. She looked asleep, peaceful even. Like she might wake up any second.

Yang prayed to whatever deity might exist that she would, to make this whole plan unnecessary. It was a hopeless line of thought of course, but it didn't stop her from trying.

"-las built this technology from scratch specifically for this. Ironwood had his brightest minds working on it." Ospin explained as best he could, hoping it would distract her from what they would be doing. Sadly, that could only last so long and Yang had tuned most of it out anyways.

"If you would step over there." He pressed a button and there was a soft hissing sound as the empty chamber's door unlatched. "We can begin shortly."

Yang complied, stepping over to the chamber, she made to step in but a hand on her shoulder stopped her. The headmaster's face was a mix of neutral with a hint of sadness. She didn't think for a second this was what he wanted.

"If you wish to change your mind, I'm afraid this is the last time I can offer. Once the transfer has begun it can not be stopped."

Yang looked back to him and tried for her best smile, she knew it must have looked weak. It certainly felt like it.

"I'm sure," If the headmaster noticed her tears, he did her the favour of not mentioning them. "Let's just get this over with."

She stepped into the chamber and a second later the glass door closed. The headmaster looked at her for a moment before stepping off to the side where a control panel sat.

Yang tried to take a deep breath but it came out more as a whimper. This was it. The moment that she had been dreading. She focused on the thoughts of her team and family, two things Amber would have no connections with. She thought of her life at Beacon and years training at Signal.

The machine whirled to life around her.

She thought of Jaune as the tears ran down her cheeks. She started screaming a second later.

* * *

**Authors Note: I know what you must be thinking… Raven has no taste in interior decoration. What? Something else on your mind? Nonsense, surely that was the most important thing to happen this chapter. **

**Hope y'all enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know what you think. Approve or disapprove I always love to hear peoples thoughts. **

**Sincerely SE**


	35. Chapter 35

**Authors Note: Don't forget to review after reading to let me know what you think. Also, if you'd like to support me a little bit more directly consider donating to the Pat reon.**

* * *

Yang gasped, shooting up in her bed. She reached to tear the thing from her face, only to find that there was nothing there. She looked around frantically to see that she was no longer on the roads but back at Beacon. In one of the medical rooms, not that she spent much time there.

She panted in her bed, bringing her hand to her forehead. It came away slick with sweat. Her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath.

The fight had exhausted her, the powers taking their toll due to repeated use, but the way it had ended.

She shuddered at the memory of the pain. Th-that _thing_, whatever it was, had tried to steal the power from her. That woman had tried to steal her power, along with her two allies. That one girl's semblance was especially dangerous.

It had been foolish to travel alone, she knew that, but she thought she had been powerful enough to stay safe. Honestly, who in their right mind would attack a Maiden?

Salem of course. She was an idiot to think her identity was secret, despite Ozpin's best effort. She had nearly been killed. That thing had nearly taken the Maiden powers from her. It would have succeeded were it not for her…

Her uncle.

Qrow.

Yang's eyes widened in panic as the realization hit her. Her breathing, which had finally started to calm, left her in panicked breaths.

She needed to focus. What was her name?

_Yang Xiao Long._

The answer came easy to her, so she tried another.

Where was she raised?

_Patch._

Again, no thought was required. She slowly made her way through everything she could think of. Her family, her friends, her team, where she trained before Beacon. Everything.

She was still herself.

Relief crashed into her, forcing her to sit back in the bed. She had thought… it didn't matter. She was still herself. As she was finally able to gain her bearings she began to take note of something else. She didn't feel any different.

She had expected the powers to be akin to getting your semblance or having your aura unlocked. Were it not for the headache and memory of the pain she would have said it was just a dream.

Sitting up, she took a deep breath and pulled her scroll out.

There was a message from Ozpin saying that he had informed her team of her current location, as well as an excuse of training with Glynda if they asked what had happened. Apparently, she had been trying to get some last minute training for the festival.

She rolled her eyes at the excuse, Weiss wouldn't buy it, or failing that, she would be furious that she had gone and gotten hurt the day before they were likely to be sent to the doubles. She made to call Ozpin but her finger hovered over the button before she closed his information and pulled up another.

The message took a moment to send but Ruby responded almost instantly. Yang smiled at the rapid messages asking if she was ok, no doubt her sister was already making her way to the nurse's office.

Yang hesitated a moment before asking her sister to find Jaune's team as well. She had to tell them something.

Her sister said she'd be there in five minutes. Yang took the time to steady her nerves for the argument she knew was coming.

It was easier to ask for forgiveness than permission.

* * *

"You aren't going to stop her?" Glynda watched the screen in front of them. Said screen showed the members of team RWB and JNPR making their way to the medical wing.

It didn't take a wizard to guess at why they were in such a hurry, nor did it take a wizard to guess at what the young girl was about to do.

Ironwood remained silent, simply watching the display in front of them.

Revealing the truth was dangerous, he had tried it many times throughout his many life times to varying degrees of success, but it was not always the worst action to take. It was always important to know what you may face, if only so you can prepare for the worst.

Ozpin sighed, flicking the screen off and taking a long sip from his mug.

"No, Glynda," He tried for a calm tone but the exhaustion must have been evident, judging from their expressions. "I do not intend to stop her."

"Why not?" James' voice was calm, making it difficult to guess what he was thinking. Thankfully, Ozpin had experience with the General and centuries of trial and error to learn even the most subtle of tells. James doubted his decision for the Maiden.

"Because I don't believe we could truly stop her." Ozpin explained. "I have already stressed the importance of secrecy, and I believe she will do the same with them. To ask her to stay silent when she knows something is coming… she would never do it. At the very least, she would tell Miss Rose, and likely Mr. Arc. Both of them would assuredly tell their teams in time."

"Then why not tell them all yourself?" James asked. "Why not earn their trust by bringing them in yourself?"

"Because, old friend, if it were up to me they would not know." Ozpin sat back in his chair. "If it were up to me Miss Xiao Long would not be the maiden at all."

Ozpin could hear his friends teeth grinding together, even with several feet between them. "If you didn't want her to be the maiden, why did you choose her over the others?"

"She was the best candidate available."

"Choosing her drove away one of your most loyal agents," James' face was expressionless. "undisciplined though he may be, Qrow was an invaluable asset. One you have lost because of your choice of his niece. I demand to know why."

Hearing him speak of Qrow so highly should have been a good thing, the two usually being at each other's throats, but the tone of his friend's voice betrayed any such feelings.

"My choice had very little to do with her." Ozpin sighed. "Miss Xiao Long is among one of the best currently attending Beacon, yes, but she is not _the_ best in terms of raw fighting ability." James attempted to interrupt but Ozpin continued before he could. "I did not choose her for such a thing however. I chose her because of what she brings with her."

"A strong candidate is needed." James once again attempted to speak. "Amber was strong." Whatever he made to say died in his throat, the General snapping his mouth shut in silence. "Amber was gifted in the use of the powers and she spent years studying how to properly use it… and she was defeated quite easily by not one, but three opponents."

The wizard reached for his mug. "She was defeated because she fought alone."

"And Miss Xiao Long won't?" James asked.

Ozpin nodded. "That, my friend, is why I chose her over any other."

"Fine," Ironwood grumbled. "Let's hope you've made the right choice."

"Only time will tell."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Ironwood whispered.

"I have some time before Miss Xiao Long will be available," Ozpin said. "What was it you said you discovered James?"

The General took the opportunity for what it was, changing the subject. "We've finally managed to break the encryption on Torchwick's scroll. We found several messages hinting at other operations that I have my agents looking into as we speak."

"Any information we could use to flush out those behind all this?"

James sighed. "No. The scroll contained very little in the way of messages or calls related to anything we didn't already know and only one file was found to be installed."

Ozpin waited for him to continue for a moment before rolling his eyes and asking the question he had so clearly been meant to.

"And what would that be?"

The General smiled. "An activation code."

* * *

"You did what!?" Weiss was the first to speak, after nearly three minutes of perfect silence.

Yang couldn't bear to meet her teammates' eyes.

"You didn't even talk to us about it?" Ruby's voice was muffled, mostly due to the fact that she had practically launched herself into a hug the second she had entered the room.

As Yang went through ehr explanation Ruby had practically buried her head in her sister's side, refusing to let go. Yang didn't want her to.

"Why?" Blake asked from her otherside. "Why didn't you talk to us first? You sho-"

"Because you would have talked me out of it!" Yang clenched her eyes shut. "And then Ozpin would have gone to somebody else and… and there was a good chance it would have been one of you and I-I… I couldn't let that happen."

She felt a hand grab hers. She didn't have to open her eyes to guess who it was.

"You should have talked to us," Jaune said. "Or at least your team."

_Or at least me._ Were the words she heard him say. The pain in his voice hurt but she believed he would understand. She knew Jaune and she also knew what lengths he would go for his team.

He had to understand.

"How could the Headmaster do this!?" Weiss would also understand, in time at least. Oh she wouldn't be ok with it but she would understand.

They all would in time, she just hoped it would be sooner rather than later.

She needed them by her side for what was to come. The thought of facing that person alone aga… she didn't want to die.

"You painted a target on your back." Blake's tone was the kind of neutral Yang had learned was forced. "Whoever tried to take the power before will try again, you know that right?"

Yang nodded and her partner sighed. "At least you thought it out yourself."

"You're… not mad?"

"Oh no, I am very mad!" Blake snapped, any sense of calm disappearing for a moment before she brought it back under control. "You kept trying to get me to talk to everyone, to be honest with the team and trust them and open up when something was wrong and-" She cut herself off, clenching her hands as they shook. "Then you go and do this."

Yang winced at the pain on her partner's face. It was true. She had tried to convince Blake to open up about the White Fang and the second something big came along… she did exactly what Blake had done.

"But it would be hypocritical of me to hold it against you." Her confusion must have shown on her face. "I understand why you felt the need to keep it a secret… that doesn't make it okay but… I understand." Blake stopped to think for a moment. "For what it's worth… from an intellectual standpoint, I think you made the right choice."

She was just against it because it was _her _friend, _her _teammate, _her_ partner, that was in danger.

It wasn't perfect but it was at least something. It would take time but Blake had as good as said she'd support her decision.

"It's too late now, isn't it?" Weiss asked to which Yang nodded.

"The process can't be reversed."

"Idiot," She whispered. "You should have talked to us." Weiss turned away.

Yang didn't hold it against her. She was just worried. The Ice Queen had a heart of gold when you got to know her, she truly cared for her friends. It had been one of her most redeemable features, but with that came the concern of losing said friends.

After years of not having it, finding those bonds only to risk having them torn away was likely a scary prospect to the heiress.

Ruby didn't say anything, simply holding her close.

"I'm sorry."

Sorry that she had hurt them. Sorry that this was how they ahd to find out, only after the fact, but she wasn't sorry for making the choice.

She had to protect them… and if that meant being the one in danger then so be it. She was strong, one of the best in their year, but she knew that alone wouldn't be enough.

With all of them together though? There wasn't anything they couldn't beat.

She'd make it up to them, all of them. She'd protect them all.

* * *

**Author's Note: This chapter was a pain in my ass… I was stuck on the opening section all week and couldn't figure out what I wanted to do until literally the last minute and as a result I am really not a fan of it. I don't think I did the characters right and I feel the dialogue and transitions are just… ugh! I guess we'll see what y'all have to say.**

**So, I had hoped to avoid this but I think I'm going to have to explain why Ozpin picked Yang in this story and not somebody else. See, I had expected people to question why Yang agreed, and was ready to defend that point, but I thought I had done a good enough job of explaining Ozpin's motivations, clearly not. That's my failure and I apologise for that.**

**His choice hinges on one main idea, that Pyrrha is no longer as ideal a candidate. In this story her semblance is revealed, which while it happened in canon Ozpin didn't KNOW that.**

**In this story the idea that Pyrrha is the "Invincible Girl" is tarnished. She lost to Roman bloody Torchwick, how could she win against whoever is after the maiden powers? That gamble is even less likely to pay off.**

**But most importantly, in canon one of the biggest things I felt was the deciding factor was Pyrrha's team. In this story, there is a candidate who can have TWO full teams of talented fighters ready and willing to fight. Yang and Jaune being a couple has made it so that whenever the Fall Maiden is in trouble there will be 8 people fighting instead of 4. **

**Yang is a strong fighter, not as strong as Pyrrha, but what she lacks in raw fighting ability she makes up for by having more back up. More people to rely on. More people she can trust to watch her back and help her.**

**I hope that big ramble makes sense. Let me know your thoughts in the review.  
Sincerely SE**


	36. Chapter 36

**Authors Note: Don't forget to review and let me know what you think once your done. **

* * *

There were a few more questions from everyone, which Yang tried to answer to the best of her ability. SImple things like who had the power before her and where it came from. Some answers were more satisfying than others but after a few minutes they started to relax just a little bit more.

Her team was still hurt, scared, but… they didn't try to take it out on her. Blake and Weiss alternated between asking questions about what the power was supposed to be able to do and what they knew about the people who were after it.

She told them how the running idea seemed to be somebody backed by Salem, which nobody bothered debating. Why wouldn't the queen of the grimm want such a power? In her hands that power might have been enough to kill countless people or turn the tide in the "secret war".

Mostly the questions were a means to distract everybody from the weight of her actions. It worked for a time, but it didn't last.

A soft knocking on the door heralded the arrival of the person she had feared speaking with the most. Not because she hated Ozpin, though she could admit to some animosity, but because she dreaded him sending her friends away to speak in private.

To call the tone of the room awkward would have been an understatement. The second he opened the door all eyes had focused on him, a mix of glares and hatred, along with a mix of betrayal.

Ozpin bore it with the same expression he always had.

"Miss Xiao Long, I trust you are feeling well? There were no complications?" He didn't bother trying to veil his words. He knew that she had told them, she just couldn't tell what he thought of it.

His expressions had always been so hard to read. She shook her head to dispel the thoughts, focusing on his question.

"I'm myself, mostly." She didn't miss the panicked looks in her friend's eyes but she tried to force herself on in the hope they wouldn't ask. "I didn't have any trouble remembering my friends or team aside from some initial confusion upon waking up." She left out what exactly that _confusion _was.

"Good," Ozpin smiled. "Then it seems our worst fears have not come to pass."

Yang smiled back but said nothing.

"I've actually come to talk to all of you." Ozpin spared a glance around the room. "I believe Miss Xiao Long has filled you in?" He waited a moment for them to nod before taking a deep breath. "Then I believe it would be best to get straight to the point." Despite his words, he paused a moment, allowing them the time to speak if they chose.

The room stayed silent.

"Miss Xiao Long can not be allowed to compete in the tournament." There were no objections. "Obviously your team will be allowed to continue through the tournament but the risk for her is too great."

Yang felt her shoulders slump. She knew she would likely be barred from fighting but hearing it still upset her. Ruby nudged her shoulder, offering her a small smile that didn't reach her eyes.

"She will also have training sessions with Miss Goodwitch to help her learn to control it." Ozpin raised a hand to stop them from interrupting. "You will all be allowed to attend and watch."

Again, nobody spoke.

Ozpin sighed. "The details will be sent to your scrolls. Your first session shall be later today, so long as you feel able."

"I'll be there." Yang said. "I feel fine just… strange."

Ozpin smiled. "I can understand. You are the first person in the history of Remnant to have their aura tampered with in such a way." Yang spared a glance for her friends, trying to gauge their expressions.

A mix of glares and neutral expressions, far too neutral to be natural. Jaune was the hardest to read. He tried for the same expression as the rest but she could see something else just beneath the surface. His eyes flicked with an emotion she didn't quite recognize.

"I want you all to know I wish it hadn't come to this." Ozpin tapped his cane on the floor, resting both hands on gently on top of it. His eyes were closed. "I know that likely means nothing to you now but I truly am sorry."

She believed him. She wasn't sure why. Perhaps it was the emotion behind his words, a subtle thing she hadn't realized she'd noticed, or the uncharacteristic twitch under his eye.

Despite her current situation she couldn't bring herself to hate him. She felt she should have been angry but… she didn't believe for a second that Ozpin would put them in danger if had the option not to.

He wasn't cruel so much as desperate.

Yang had interacted very little with the man but… she felt like she knew him. She didn't dare ask why, nor did she bring it up.

Ozpin turned and left, nobody saying a word. As she looked to her team, she didn't fail to notice how none of them could quite meet her eyes.

She tried to not let it show how much that hurt her, they had the right to be upset with her, but she doubted she managed to hide it all. Jaune squeezed her hand, confirming that he'd noticed.

* * *

The crowd's cheers were nearly the loudest sound Yang could remember hearing. Second only to Nora's current cheer that bordered on screaming. Despite how hard she tried to be louder, it was a losing battle. Still, Yang cheered all the same.

Ruby and Weiss had won the doubles match.

It had been a bit of a risk sending them, Blake being the second strongest straight up fighter in their group had been the first choice. The issue was that her style didn't mesh well with anybody aside from Yang.

She was an agility based fighter, reliant on hit and run tactics and giving ground. Weiss, as talented as she was, needed somebody who could hold their ground to buy her a bit of time to utilize her summons to the best of their ability. Or at the very least strong arm their way through their opponent and rush to her aide.

Blake was a methodical fighter, preferring to chip away at her opponent rather than take risks.

Ruby was a better choice to partner her but that still had flaws. Her sister was a fast paced fighter, faster than what most people could keep up with, and thanks to her weapon she was adaptable. She also sucked at holding ground, a side effect of having a semblance that encouraged you to go rushing around all the time.

So in the end, they had decided it best to not send Blake at all.

Ruby and Weiss had flaws but their synergy was unmatched. Despite how much the Ice Queen had railed against it at the start of the year, the two of them had become close friends and could speak without words.

Blake and Yang had something similar but those two took it to another level. Combine their semblances and the two of them were a seriously deadly pair.

It had been a risk for sure, but it had paid off, and now team RWBY would have to decide who was to go on to the single bouts.

Yang felt her happiness dim a bit, despite her effort to ignore it.

That should have been her. She was the most well rounded and she had the best chance for beating Pyrrha. It wasn't fa-

Yang chook her head, dispelling the thoughts as swiftly as they had appeared. Instead, she focused on the display and the girls displayed on it.

Ruby's smile was bright enough to blind the grimm and Weiss was fighting to maintain her composure.

She could hear the words now. _To show such happiness would be below her station!_ or something along that line. Still, for those that knew her, her joy was obvious. The heiress' eyes had a spark to them that was practically begging to be praised.

Team JNPR followed Blake and her down to where the competitors would be exciting. Not a second later a cloud of rose petals collided with her, throwing her to the ground.

"Yang!" Her sister squealed. "Did you see that! We won!" Yang smield but was unable to get a word in as the team leader launched herself up off the ground and directly into an unprepared Blake. Promptly bulldozing her to the ground as well.

She took the chance to get up and dust herself off, just in time for Weiss to come running through the door Ruby had just exploded from. Running may have been a bit of an exaggeration, a Schnee did not run, but for Weiss it may as well have been.

Again, Yang noted the look in the girls eyes. Though she didn't ask for it, she was hoping for their approval.

"You two did amazing!" Yang stepped forward and pulled the heiress into a hug. Her resistance was weak, a testament to how overjoyed she was.

"Of course we did you dolt! Now let me go!" Despite her protests, she actually pulled her a little closer, offering the most sorry excuse for a hug Yang had ever heard of.

She couldn't help but laugh. A second later though Weiss' attempts to flee turned aggressive, making it more akin to holding a beowulf.

"Ruby! No don't you-" Whatever she planned to say was cut off as a cloud of petals smashed into them, once again dragging her to the ground. Her laughter grew louder and seemed to spread to those around them.

She could hear Ren trying to stop Nora from jumping in and it was probably the threat of that happening that brought the sudden group hug to an end. Death by Nora hug wasn't quite how any of them wanted to go.

The two groups slowly made their way out towards the food stalls, knowing they would have some time before the next rounds started. Pyrrha and Nora had yet to fight and so they didn't want to stray too far since they would have to be back in the arena in case the two were up next.

Yang's scroll beeped in her pocket and as she pulled it out her good mood came to an end. Jaune was the first to notice her shift.

"Is something wrong?" He whispered it in an attempt to create some semblance of privacy but the entire group turned to her.

"It's Miss Goodwitch." Yang swallowed. "We have a training session in half an hour."

She didn't miss how the groups shoulders sagged, the joy and distraction having come to an abrupt end.

Jaune didn't miss a second. "I'll come with you."

"Jaune, your team is just about to go fight." Yang smiled softly. "I can't ask you to miss that."

"She'll have us." Ruby spoke softly. "Sorry we'll miss your guys' fight."

Jaune looked conflicted but smiled a second later, turning to look at her team. "Don't worry, I'm sure Nora will recount all the details for you." He turned back to her, a slow blush working its way onto his cheeks. "Blake, do me a favour and cover Ruby's eyes please."

Her partner did so without hesitation, much to Ruby's confusion.

A second later she felt Jaune grasp her arms and pulled her in. She wasn't exactly sure when his lips met hers, her mind failing to register anything for several long moments. The kiss reminded her of their first real one the night of the dance. The strange mix of a new exciting feeling along with some sense of familiarity.

A whistle from nearby had the two of them break apart.

"Nora!" Everyone said.

Ruby finally broke free of Blake's hold. "I missed it!" She turned on Blake immediately. "Traitor! That was prime teasing material!"

Yang fought back her blush as best she could, watching as Jaune was pulled back by Nora and back towards the stadium.

"You totally need to teach Ren how to do that!" Yang failed to hear the rest of their conversation as the team made their way back towards the way they had just come from. Yang could only stare.

A snickering from beside her snapped her from her daze.

"Um… W-we should… go." Yang gestured in the direction of the Bullheads which would take them down to Beacon. She attempted to hide her blush by looking away but judging by the laughter and sound of pictures being taken she had failed in that regard.

Damn it. She would have to make him pay for that.

* * *

"Again."

Yang groaned under her breath but fell into a low stance, waiting for the signal. A second later Miss Goodwitch blew a whistle and Yang accessed the power of the Maiden as she lunged forward, extending her arm out in a sharp movement. Stopping just short of the chair that was acting as her target.

A slight breeze knocked it back a foot but nothing else. It was a sharp contrast to the gale she was trying to summon.

Yang growled and grit her teeth. She launched her other fist forward, achieving much the same result. She could feel her eyes flick red as she was about to break the chair with her hands, only to be stopped last second.

"Why don't we take a break." Miss Goodwitch didn't sound annoyed. Somehow that made her even more mad.

"No, I've got this!" She snapped, turning back towards the chair and once again preparing to assault it.

"Miss Xiao Long, rest. This is not something you can simply fight your way through." Miss Goodwitch explained. "Patience is required."

Yang sighed but managed to get her anger under control, her eyes flashing back to their normal lilac.

"Right, I-I'm sorry." Yang moved over to a nearby seat. Her team had been watching from a little higher up for the last hour or so. They kept their distance, allowing them to practice, while still being close enough to watch.

Miss Goodwitch approached but chose to stand. "You have nothing to apologise for, you've done nothing wrong."

"I just-" Yang bit her lip, taking a glance back at her team. "I just thought it would come a little more naturally."

Miss Goodwitch's mouth curled up on the ends in the closing thing to a smile she had ever seen from the woman.

"Magic is not the same as a Semblance or aura, one must know how to direct it before they can even begin to utilize it."

"You know a lot about this kind of stuff for somebody who doesn't have any." Yang murmured.

Again Miss Goodwitch smiled, only this time there was something more to it. "I was the one to train the previous Fall Maiden."

"You trained Amber?" Miss Goodwitch nodded. "What… what was she like?"

The professor spared her a glance but seemed to ponder the question for a moment.

"She was intelligent, a passion for learning." She said. "Amber was unfortunate enough to be given the powers from a young age… but she handled it remarkably well. She never liked to focus on the negative. She had a good heart and the world is lesser for her loss."

Yang swallowed and looked away. That had been… a far more personal answer than she had expected.

Glynda always put off an air of confidence and professionalism, it was easy to forget just how human she was. The stern facade masking any sign of weakness.

Still, she was always the kindest of the group. Treating her more like a young girl than a Maiden. Ozpin always tried to but he neve-

Yang clenched her eyes shut. That wasn't her memory. She rose from her seat, taking a stance across from the target.

She focused on the power she knew was within her. It took a moment to find it but she felt the slightest… tug on her aura as she did. The Maiden powers were like that from what she could gather.

Subtle and unnoticeable, like they belonged there and had been there her whole life. Whether that was typical or merely a side effect of how she had been given the powers Yang didn't know.

_Deep breaths. Focus on it. _She felt the tug change into an ember before growing to a spark. She ignored how that thought made no sense. She willed the spark to grow and grow fueling it with a force she didn't understand. As the power built up she lunged forward and directed the force forward.

The chair moved back several feet falling off the arena this time.

Yang groaned and slouched. That hadn't been what she wanted but… it was progress she supposed. She went to reset only to nearly stumble back as the exhaustion finally became too much.

It was a strange sensation. Physically she was fine and her Aura was still in the green but something else within her was depleted. She felt like she hadn't slept in days.

"I think that is enough for today." Miss Goodwitch stood and gestured for her team. "You need rest. Try to relax and enjoy the festival, tomorrow marks the beginning of the semi-finals and if I'm not mistaken your team has quite the chance at making it through. Try to enjoy it, we can come back to this after tomorrow's fights."

Yang wanted to argue but something about the professor's words made it clear it wasn't a suggestion. She swallowed and nodded. Her team joined them a few seconds later.

"Thank you, Glynda… for everything." The Professor smiled but said nothing. Yang turned and allowed herself to be led from the training hall and back in the direction of their rooms.

She flopped down on her bed the second they made it back. Her body was sore and it wasn't. She was drained and yet bursting with energy. The duality was exhausting in its own right. Thankfully sleep was quick to claim her.

She hadn't remembered it being so difficult.

* * *

**Authors Note: When I started this chapter I was originally going to do a LOT more but quickly realised that wouldn't work. I really did try to get some stuff done this chapter though, I swear, but in the end I had to split it and have it be two chapters.**

**Writing Maiden stuff is… strange. I have literally zero reference for how this shit would work and what it would be like. It's not something that they can really touch on in the show and so I kinda just made it up the best I could. We know it takes training to use the powers to their fullest, case in point the Winter Maiden being immensely more powerful than any other we've seen, but again, I have zero reference for what that training would even look like. **

**Overall I hope you enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts.  
Sincerely SE**


	37. Chapter 37

**Author's Notes: Don't forget to review and let me know your thoughts when you're done.**

* * *

Yang sat down with a sigh, leaning back and enjoying the moment of calm. Her nap had been just what she needed to recharge her… whatever powered magic. Aura? Mental fortitude? Mana?

Ozpin hadn't said much on how it worked… he hadn't said anything actually, but from what she gathered it wasn't quite the same as physical effort or a semblance. It felt more… like it came from her core, if that made sense.

She groaned just thinking about it.

"Rough day?" Jaune's voice was filled with far too much delight and she simply glared at him in response. He chuckled, the bastard.

They had decided to meet out at one of the more secluded seating areas offered by Beacon. In truth it was nothing more than a couple tables with a few chairs but it had a nice view of the garden and was just isolated enough to give them some much needed alone time. It being later in the day certainly helped as well.

The sun hadn't quite set yet and was giving off just the right amount of warmth.

"You could say that." Yang sighed. "Training went… less than ideal."

"How so?"

"It's more difficult than I thought it would be to use." She avoided saying what on the off chance they weren't alone. All the talk of secret wars and conspiracy theories had her a fair bit paranoid. Jaune of course had no such paranoia.

"Oh, you mean the magical powers only a handful of women in all of history have had access to, a power people have apparently killed and waged wars for, is difficult to control? Who knew?" Jaune smirked.

"Drop the sarcasm, it totally doesn't fit you." She leaned forward to flick his nose. "But yes, who could have known. I was practically knocked out after only an hour of practice. I only just woke up from my nap."

"That explains the bed head." Yang glared at him and he rolled his eyes, smiling despite how she went for her best Miss Goodwitch impersonation. "You haven't had any other troubles though, right?"

Yang looked away. "You sound just like them."

"Your team?" He waited for her to nod before continuing. "They're just worried about you, you know?"

She huffed but didn't say anything, leaning further back in her chair and closing her eyes instead.

She didn't hate them for their concern, in fact she loved them all the more because of it. Despite the fact that she had gone behind their backs, despite the fact she hadn't talked with them at all about the most important decision of her life, they still cared.

She didn't know what she had expected. They were all good people by themselves, despite the baggage most of them had brought to Beacon, but together they were something more. They had forged a bond far stronger than she had expected in a far faster time frame than was probably normal.

Despite how cliché it was, they were family; and family had issues sometimes. It was a sign they cared enough to be worried for her safety. She thought she should have been offended that they didn't think she was strong enough but… oddly enough she didn't get that impression.

They were her family, one of them literally, and she couldn't hold anything against them. They had all the right in the world to be mad at her, and they were to a degree, but they hadn't let that become something worse. They weren't mad about her choice, they were mad that she hadn't trusted them.

It might have been better to say they were disappointed. Funny how that didn't make her feel any better.

Still, despite how much she loved them, the constant presence had gotten on her nerves in a way she wasn't used to. There had been one of them with her at all times since she woke up after the transfer. That wasn't strange in and of itself of course, they all shared a room after all, but something about it was just… different.

Blake had stayed behind to watch her while she slept off the exhaustion from training; and didn't that sound creepy thinking about it?

The moment alone with Jaune was greatly appreciated, but it had been difficult to get. In the end, he had been forced to promise to contact them immediately if anything went wrong.

She just wanted to be left alone for a moment, time to think on all th-

A pair of hands grabbed her shoulders from behind, snapping her from her thoughts and causing her to jump slightly.

"Relax," Jaune whispered. "You're too stressed." He began to move his hands in a way that could only be described as magical.

Yang leaned back into her chair closer to his fingertips, allowing him to better work the muscles there.

"Handsome, funny, kind, and now this?" Yang closed her eyes, sighing contentedly. "It's a miracle I'm not beating the girls off of you with a stick."

She heard Jaune scoff softly. "I did have seven sisters after all, I had to find some way to apologize for my stupidity... on more than one occasion."

"Well, I for one am grateful for such stupidity." She smiled. "It made you nearly perfect."

His hands stilled a moment before continuing. "I don't know about that, stupidity was rarely a desirable trait."

Yang leaned her head back looking up at Jaune's face. Her hair draped over his forearms. "I find you plenty desirable." She smirked as his face grew red.

"Y-yeah, well, you'd be the only one." He looked away but kept his hands working.

"I better be," her smirk fell away, adopting a more serious look. "If there are other girls you're involved with I would very much like to know."

Jaune looked back to her with horror in his eyes. "W-what?! Of course n-" He was interrupted by the sound of her laughter. "That's not funny."

She disagreed, the blush on his face was quite entertaining.

"Besides, you're the only girl for me." It was Yang's turn to blush, her laughter slowing dying. She lifted her head back up in an attempt to hide her embarrassment. Judging by the sound of his chuckle she hadn't managed it.

"That was super cheesy." She crossed her arms under her breasts, attempting to adopt a glare at nothing in particular. Thankfully, Jaune was behind her, meaning he couldn't see that it had come off more as a pout.

"That was the point." He ran a hand through her hair, fixing it back in place. "You like cheesy, don't deny it."

"Tch." Yang tutted, again feeling the heat build up on her face.

Jaune moved his hands away from her shoulders and walked back in front of her. She missed the feeling immediately, the gentle warmth and soothing motions had felt nice.

She turned her head away from him in an attempt to hide her still red face. He placed his hand gently under her chin, bringing it back to him.

His lips met hers only for a moment before pulling away. He smiled even as her cheeks took on a new, far darker, colour of red. He didn't say anything, simply pulling a chair closer in front of her and grabbing one of her hands.

She appreciated the subtle support, squeezing his hand back as a sad smile came over her face.

"I-I'm really sorry Jaune." Her voice shook slightly and she felt his hand squeeze hers once more.

"You don't ha-"

"Dont." She cut him off with the single word, ducking her head in shame. "Don't say that I don't have anything to be sorry for. Don't pretend that I didn't do something wrong. I-" Her voice cracked, she coughed slightly to compensate. "I should have talked to you, I should have told you _before_ I made my choice. I'm so sorry."

There was only silence between them for a moment, Yang unable to force herself to look up for fear of what she might see. He had every right to be just as angry as her team and yet he hadn't shown a single bit of that.

"I forgive you."

"J-just like that?! You're not even mad that I-" Yang looked up to see the beginnings of tears in his eyes. She froze, unsure of what to do. Thankfully Jaune took the moment to speak.

"I was never mad." He smiled all the brighter, a stark contrast to the sadness behind his eyes. "I was sad that you felt you had to do it alone. I would have been there for you, your friends would have been there for you."

"Jaune I'm-"

"But I don't care." He shook his head. "You're here now and the worse didn't happen. I refuse to be mad at you because I would have made the same choice in your place, I just wish you had told me so I could have been there if the worst…"

"I'm so sorry." She apologized again, gripping his hand tight enough to flare aura. "Jaune I l-"

Somebody grabbed the chair from their table, pulling it back before sitting down. Yang took a second to gather herself and turned, prepared to tell the person off.

Her words died in her throat.

"U-uncle Qrow!?" She practically shouted. She wasn't sure who she had been expecting but this certainly wasn't it.

"Firecracker, how's it going?" Yang sputtered, her brain unable to form a response to the sudden appearance of her Uncle. He turned to look at Jaune, eye's narrowing slightly. "Who's this?"

Oh, oh no.

This was the moment she had been dreading ever since Jaune and she had started dating. This was the infamous 'boyfriend meets overprotective uncle' scene playing out before her eyes.

She had hoped to introduce him to her dad first, since Jaune would have been able to make a good impression on the more gentle, and most important, mild tempered man.

Instead, it seemed Qrow was going to have the first crack. She almost told Jaune to run, thankfully, or regrettably, he had already reached out a hand to shake the older hunters.

"Jaune Arc, I'm a friend of Yang's."

Qrow took the Jaune's hand, shaking it for a moment but not letting go after. "Just friends?" His voice was clipped, and judging by Jaune's expression he had caught it to.

Yang swallowed before speaking up. "N-no, he's more than that. He's…" her voice fell to a whisper and her face once again started to heat up. "My boyfriend."

Silence. Perfect silence. Not a single sound from all of Beacon. How was that even possible?

"W-we've been dating for a couple weeks now."

It was then that Yang realized Qrow still hadn't let go of Jaune's hand. In fact, his grip appeared to be far tighter than before.

Jaune winced and for a second she thought she saw aura flair before Qrow finally released his hand.

"What about that. Yang hasn't mentioned you... at all." Qrow kept his eyes locked on Jaune, even as the younger man turned to look at her. She laughed nervously, bringing a hand to the back of her head.

"Is he the reason you got the hair cut?"

"Y-yeah, well it wasn't his fault but he was… involved… sorta." Yang rambled.

Qrow finally broke his eyes away to look at her. "We need to talk. Alone."

Jaune looked at her and, once she nodded, stood up. "I'm gonna go grab something to drink. I'll be back in a couple minutes." He didn't look like he wanted to leave but slowly he stepped away.

Qrow never looked away from her. "Really? Him?" Yang made to speak but he cut her off. "Forget it, I don't have time to hear it. Ozpin will know I'm here before too long."

Yang was confused but stayed silent. Qrow always had an air of comfortability about him. A mix of familiarity and a joking nature. Today though… there was something different. His face was rigid, jaw clenched and he seemed more agitated.

Was it because of Jaune? But, if it were, why mention Ozpin?

Wait… he'd been the one to save Amber, that meant he-

"I know all about what he did to you."

Yang froze, looking away. "I don't know wh-"

"The Maidens Yang, I know everything." He paused a moment to let it sink in. "I worked with Ozpin to fight the people after it." He rose from his chair. "We need to find Ruby and leave."

"L-leave?" It was an automatic response that had her standing. "What are yo-"

"Ozpin is gonna use you, put you in danger and get you killed! Just like-" He growled and looked away. "There's a place we can go that Ozpin can't find, and even if he does the people there will protect you."

"Qrow I ca-"

"It's your mother's tribe." Yang fell silent. "I managed to get in contact with her after I found out what that bastard was planning. She agreed to offer you a place to lay low."

"My… Raven?"

"You'll be safe there, from whoever is after the powers. She has experience staying hidden from Ozpin and she isn't a pushover. She'll keep you safe. She agreed to let Ruby stay as well, though I dou-" Qrow was cut off by a slap.

"You knew where she was!?" Yang cried. "All this time!?"

"No, Yang, I didn't. I just managed to get a message to-" She tried to slap him again but he ducked back.

"You knew?!" She felt her eyes snap red as she reached out to punch him. Again, he dodged back.

"Yang! We don't have time for this!" Qrow yelled. "We need t-"

"I won't leave!" Qrow brought his arms up to block her next punch, being pushed back several feet from the force of it. "I won't run like she did! I wont leave my team like she did!"

"You'll die if you stay!" Qrow spoke but Yang didn't hear him.

"I wont leave my family like she did!" It took monumental effort for her to not punch Qrow again, to reign in her anger. Her eyes flicked back to lilac. "I won't abandon them."

"Yang, you don't understand."

"Leave." She whispered.

"What she did was wrong, yes, but you need to look at the bi-"

"Leave!" Her eyes burned as she swiped her hand in front of her. Qrow was propelled backwards by a sudden gale of wind. "Get out of here!"

He landed hard but managed to roll into a low kneel. He looked back up to her before cursing under his breath and turning away from her.

A moment later he was gone.

"Argh!" She felt the burning in her eyes slowly fade as she fell to her knees. Anger turning into something else.

She wasn't sure exactly how long it took but she eventually heard footsteps approach her. She looked up to see a very surprised Jaune kneeling down before her. She pulled him down into a hug.

He didn't comment on how her tears spilled over onto his shirt.

A bird cawed from a nearby tree., breaking the eerie silence of the world around them.

* * *

**Authors Note: I started this chapter with a very clear idea in mind of how I wanted it to end… and then I remembered something that I completely forgot to take care of and promptly threw myself through a wall... I had to basically restructure the chapter and how I wanted it to go, hence why the ending section might feel a bit… off. **

**Apologise but it had to be done. Hopefully, this will allow for the next couple chapters to be better… hopefully. **

**It would be fair to say I'm less than pleased with this chapter and will be striving for better in the future. **

**In other news, I've started drafting the idea for my next story. It'll be an interesting one for sure but a little ways out yet. I'll also have two new editors to help with it so we should be able to avoid some of the issues that have persisted in this one. **

**GeneralMayhem is a great editor, and a really good friend of mine, but he can't do everything himself. These two new guys also happen to be friends of mine but they have very different perspectives on how to go about storytelling. Which will actually be really helpful.**

**I'll give more details about the new story the closer to the end we get but it's shaping up to be interesting, if a lot different than this one.**

**I hope you all enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts.**

**Sincerely SE**


	38. Chapter 38

**Authors Note: Don't forget to leave a review at the end after you've read and I hope you enjoy. **

* * *

Yang watched with bated breath as the fighters stood across from each other.

Their sister team had made it to the doubles rounds easily enough, Pyrrha alone probably could have done it but with Nora in the equation it just wasn't fair to the other team.

Once you factored in Ren and Jaune… The other team had never stood a chance.

The doubles rounds were a bit closer however. Pyrrha was still the unstoppable force she always was but the competition was a bit stiffer, having made it through the team portion.

It was still in Pyrrha's element however; she looked unfazed by the crowds standing tall and proud much like the champion fighter she was.

The unknown was Jaune. His stance was a bit more nervous, a little less confident, not having the same experience as his partner.

_He could though._ She thought to herself. _He's stronger than he's ever been and he's worked harder than a lot of other people to get there._

It had been Nora's idea, surprisingly enough, to have Jaune go into the doubles matches' with Pyrrha. It was a way for him to show his parents that he had managed to earn his place in Beacon.

He had denied at first, not wanting to throw their chances of victory aside for his own personal issues. His team had been insulted by that, explaining that winning the tournament was less important than reconnecting with his Family was.

It had been a very wholesome thing, seeing them all put aside the tournament for their friend, but it came as no shock. Despite how much Nora boasted, she did not really seem to care for the tournament, Pyrrha actively despised it; Ren didn't seem to care either way.

In the end it was a no brainer for them, their friend came first.

That being said, they were still going to try; Jaune had every intention of winning.

Jaune's parents took the seats left vacant by the two in the ring, Nora and Ren on one side with team RWBY on the other. Juniper had insisted on Yang sitting next to her.

Yang had looked to her team for help only to find them all intently staring at the screen… a screen that currently displayed nothing since the fight hadn't started yet.

She'd accused them of being the traitors that they were, even as Juniper had started to ask all kinds of questions. Most of which Yang _really_ didn't want to answer. She got the impression, however, that it was all in good fun.

Thankfully her prayers had been answered as Jaune and Pyrrha walked out onto the stage, forcing the woman's attention to something else.

"Awww, they look so cute together!" There was an awkward pause for a moment until her husband coughed. Juniper turned to her, laying a hand on her arm. "Not as cute as you two though dear, don't worry."

Yang blushed and looked away, pretending she couldn't hear the laughter from her supposed friends.

_Traitors._

Her irritation only lasted a moment though, before her attention was drawn to the stage as the countdown began.

There wasn't really a moment she noticed it, the shift from nervous wreck to trained fighter. Pyrrha had leaned over and said something and then Jaune was as confident as she had ever seen him. Standing up straight he held quite the intimidating presence… er, well… intimidating to those who didn't know him, she thought it was attractive.

_Definitely need to get him to act like that more often_

The cameras panned around and zoomed in on the two, neither of them sparing a glance away from their opponents. Jaune's face was stern and unflinching; she could have sworn she heard a number of female's swoon at the sight.

The buzzer went off, shocking Yang out of her thoughts as the fighters lunged towards each other. She _felt_ Juniper tense next to her. As Jaune locked blades with one of the fighters, only to force them back with a subtle movement he had to have stolen from Pyrrha.

Yang grinned as she watched the display below, sparing a glance towards the woman next to her whenever Jaune did something 'risky'.

As the fight went on she slowly stopped wincing every time Jaune blocked or deflected an attack, every time he lunged forward to strike at his opponent, or every time he took a strike in return.

Eventually, she even started to cheer.

* * *

Jaune sat back with a sigh that turned into a groan as the aching in his muscles only seemed to grow worse. Despite his pain he still smiled.

Pyrrha and he had actually managed to do it. They'd actually managed to win.

Not that there had ever been any doubt in Pyrrha's ability. A victory was fairly assured, regardless of whether he did well or not. Despite how much she hated to admit it, his partner had earned her title. Fighting was her element and she was very good at it.

He, on the other hand, was not nearly so gifted. He had been forced to play catch up against people who had spent their entire lives dedicated to becoming hunters.

Despite his deficiencies, despite how far he still had to go, he could confidently say he was now strong enough to stand his own; he was strong enough to win.

Training with Pyrrha and Yang had helped him in ways he couldn't express. He was far from refined, his _style_, if one could call it that, was a mix of basic techniques practiced a hundred times over.

He didn't have the experiences his friends had, nor did he have so many tricks up his sleeve, but simple worked. It had been simple moves that allowed him to fight back his own opponent long enough for Pyrrha to defeat hers.

He heard them approach long before he saw them, taking the moment to stand from the bench and brace himself. Three people ran/fell down the stairs.

"Nora…" Ren's sigh was one of practiced calm.

She didn't seem to hear him speak however, popping up off the ground a second later. Ignoring the cries of pain as she scrambled over the other two people still on the ground.

He felt Pyrrha shift to stand behind him. It was a subtle movement Jaune might not have noticed had he not been fully aware it was going to happen. He chose his moment carefully.

Nora focused her attention on the only available target, her eyes lighting up a bit _too_ much as she launched herself off the ground. A second later Jaune reached down to pick something up.

That was his story and he was going to stick to it..

He couldn't actually see his partner's face, but he could fully imagine the look of shock and betrayal as Nora collided with her. He waited until he heard the telltale sign of Nora's hugs, a soft crackling sound one might recognize as Pyrrha's armor cracking, before giving up searching for whatever he dropped.

He could feel the dirty look his partner was giving him despite how he didn't look back, instead he stepped forward and offered a hand to the other two still on the floor.

Yang took his, pulling herself up before drawing him down into a kiss. Ruby ignored his outstretched hand, standing up with semblance-enhanced speed before stepping away with a blush.

He heard the sound of a picture being taken before Yang stepped away slightly.

"Too cute~" His mother cooed. "Don't stop on my account."

Yang turned her head hiding her blush in the act of coughing; Jaune was given no such escape as his face went a few shades darker than Ruby's cape. She stepped away from him towards Pyrrha, helping to separate his partner from death-by-Nora.

Juniper stepped over a moment later, at first to compliment Pyrrha on their victory, much to his partners embarrassment, but quickly changed the subject to gushing over her newly acquired photo.

Jaune felt a hand settle on his shoulder from the side. Turning he saw his father looking on with a subtle grin. "You have no idea how happy you've just made her." He chuckled softly. "She already told Saphire to show it to your sisters."

Jaune groaned, dipping his head down some. Nicholas' soft chuckle dragged on a few more seconds due to his misery. Slowly it died however, being replaced with an awkward silence.

"Your mother wanted me to…" Nicholas sighed. "_I_ wanted to talk to you about something, if you had a moment." Jaune looked back to his friends gushing over the photos Juniper had on her scroll. Judging by the grin on Yang's face they were of the childhood photo variety.

He nodded frantically and allowed Nicholas to lead him away a bit, if only to avoid the impending black mail for a moment.

"It's about your choice in career." The older man turned to him, speaking with an eerie calm that made it difficult to decipher his opinion. "About being a huntsmen."

Jaune's eyes narrowed, already knowing where this _talk_ was about to go. "I won't quit, I've more than proved my right to be here. I'm not-"

"I want to apologise for trying to stop you." His look of confusion must have been clear, for the man before him smiled. "Your mother and I talked and we… I didn't think you had it in you when you asked me to train you, I thought you wouldn't have what it takes." The words hurt, especially coming from the man who raised him, but they were also true. He was useless before coming to Beacon. "I was wrong. You had more potential in you than I ever could have hoped."

Jaune tried to speak but found himself unable.

"I'm proud of you." His father reached forward to pull him into a hug.

After a moment of uncertainty, Jaune hugged him back.

* * *

Yang watched as Jaune and his father walked back from wherever it was they had disappeared off to. She hadn't missed the two separating off but Juniper had given her a look that seemed to scream let it happen; so she had.

She watched him carefully as he walked back. He had that dopey smile on his face that she had become so accustomed to, and she was glad that she had not interfered. She didn't know exactly what words were exchanged, and she didn't care. Whatever divide had been between him and his family was… well, not gone, nor even healed per say, but it seemed he was willing to talk with them again.

It was heartwarming to see and she knew that she wasn't the only one to have noticed. Pyrrha and Ren looked on with a content smile while Nora practically beamed at the change in her leader. The good mood was infectious enough to bring her own spirits up.

After a few more minutes of looking at photos on Juniper's scroll, a number of which she had graciously sent to their own scrolls, Yang broke off from the group to stand with Jaune. He smiled warmly at her and her heart fluttered.

Juniper spoke a moment later. "Why don't we all go out to celebrate? Our treat." The group looked a little unsure, not wanting to take advantage of their generosity or their lien. "It'll give me the time to tell you all about how his sisters used to dress him up when he was little. Oh he was just the cutest little princess!" She cooed.

"Y-you mean prince, right?"

Juniper only smiled.

"I'm in!" Yang couldn't pass it up, she pretended to not notice the look of utter betrayal on his face.

"Oh, count me in!" It only grew as everyone else joined in.

Jaune looked to his partner in hope of rescue.

"I… would like to hear it as well." Pyrrha had the decency to look mildly ashamed of herself as she said it.

Juniper's smile turned just the right amount of vicious to show she knew what she was doing. "Great, we can catch one of the bullheads back to Beacon and go to one of the restaurants at the CCT Mall."

Jaune groaned but she didn't miss the small smile there.

* * *

Yang hugged herself into Juane's side, attempting to fight back the mild exhaustion from the night before. Were it not for the noise of the crowd she might have tried to sleep bundled up against him.

She heard Juniper take another photo but couldn't bring herself to care. With the stories she now had of him, Jaune wouldn't be able to do anything with them if he had his mother send them to his scroll anyways.

Blake looked especially awkward sitting next to her, attempting to be as far away from the two as possible while only being able to move a grand total of maybe three inches due to the small seats.

She was tempted to mention how the girl's books depicted scenes of far more… awkward affairs, but she refrained. Blake was already on edge enough as it was, there being a very high chance she would be called down to fight in the next couple minutes.

Team RWBY had the utmost confidence in her abilities however, and once the fighting started she knew her partner would perform as good as ever. Still, Ruby seemed to notice Blake's nerves and did what she could to distract her. Chatting with her constantly.

Yang had no intention of rescuing her from that.

The crowd fell silent as the screen display came to life, displaying a roulette wheel. A second later it was cycling the names of the teams still in the tournament.

After what felt like an eternity it began to slow. Before the names popped up for the stadium to see. The crowds cheered, not that she had expected anything different. Any name could have appeared and they would have gone mad, but even she was excited to see the next fight.

It was a promising one indeed.

"Break some legs!" Nora cried.

"Fight well." Ren spoke softly, in stark contrast to his partner.

Ruby and Weiss gave their own variations. Yang, not sure of what to say, gave a simple thumbs up.

"Good luck Pyr." Jaune smiled brightly as his partner waved at them before disappearing into the crowd, making her way down to the staging area.

* * *

"We've taken every precaution we can. Torchwick has been surprisingly forthcoming save for names." James said. Ozpin hummed but said nothing, simply leaning back in his chair and savouring the remnants of his coffee. "All there is to do now is wait."

Ozpin attempted to smile but failed, giving up he settled for a determined gaze. Looking out over the crowd as The next bout was set to begin.

Waiting was always the hardest part. Say what you would about actual combat, strategy, and planning, but the waiting. Waiting for your opponent to make their next move, waiting for your trap to be sprung, waiting for the battle you knew was coming and yet could do nothing to prevent.

Ozpin sighed, in a rare moment feeling all his years settle on his shoulders. How he despised the game of deceit they played. For not the first time he wished things could go back to the way they were when he could take to the field against Salem, leading armies into battle against the forces that wished to do nothing less than destroy mankind.

How he missed his youth.

But times had changed, the war had changed, and so he would wait.

He could hear James' teeth grinding together as they watched their charges take the arena.

_Pyrrha Nikos and Penny Polendina… _The Headmaster wanted to look away but forced himself to watch. He would not do them the dishonour of such an action. _I'm sorry._

How he hated the game they were forced to play.

* * *

**Authors Note: I hope you enjoyed the chapter and as always I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts.**

**Sincerely SE**


	39. Chapter 39

**Authors Note: Hope you enjoy and don't forget to leave a review when you're done.**

* * *

Yang felt the burning in her lungs as she forgot to breath. She tried to take a shallow breath but found herself unable, eyes focused on the arena. Fifty thousand people had fallen utterly silent as they watched the scene that had unfurled in front of them.

Pyrrha fell to her knees in front of Penny's remains just as the overhead monitors flickered.

"This is not a tragedy," A voice rang out over the intercom system. "This was not an accident."

Jaune turned and started to push his way down to the arena, pushing people around him as he moved to help his partner. That served as the shock to get them all moving, snapping from their surprise. With a shake of her head, Yang set out after him, doing her best to block out the voice that taunted them.

"This is what happens when you hand over your trust, your safety, your _children_, to men who claim to be your guardians... but are nothing more than men."

People gawked on as the voice continued, even as their group shoved through them. She could feel the fear in the air even if nobody ran or moved, even if nobody even spoke, she could feel the panic growing. Hunters and civilians alike simply waited.

"Our academies headmasters wield more power than most armies, and one was audacious enough to claim both." The voice sounded amused, even as Yang felt her stomach roll.

"They cling to this power in the name of peace and yet, what do we have here? One nation's attempt at a synthetic army, mercilessly torn apart by another star pupil. What need would Atlas have for a Soldier disguised as an innocent little girl?" The voice paused a moment, allowing people to think. It didn't take a genius to see that it was a loaded question and yet… Yang knew what people would think.

There wasn't a use for an android that advanced as a Soldier against Grimm but Penny wasn't a soldier, regardless of whether she was real or not. She was Ruby's friend and she… and she was…

…Dead.

"And what of Ozpin? The esteemed Headmaster of Beacon Academy and the leader of Vale's huntsmen and huntresses? The man who has repeatedly failed to protect that which he has claimed as his, and make no mistake, he considers Vale his. He has done all he can to prevent the kingdom from building its own military to stop the kingdom from being able to challenge his authority. When Atlas marched it's armies in, there was no force capable of stopping them. His deception and so called _diplomacy_ failed to save the kingdom from invasion."

"Perhaps Ozpin thought that defeating Atlas in the tournament would help people forget his colossal failure to protect Vale when the Grimm invaded its streets not but a few weeks ago. Or perhaps, this was his message to a tyrannical dictator that has occupied an unsuspecting kingdom with armed forces." Again, it was another leading question, but… it made a twisted sort of sense in a way.

Yang cursed as she ran, hating herself for listening.

"Honestly, I haven't the slightest clue as to who is right and who is wrong… But I know that the existence of peace is fragile, and that the leaders of our kingdoms conduct their business with iron gloves."

"Our kingdoms are at the brink of war. Yet we, the citizens, are left in the dark. So I ask you, when the first shots are fired… Who do you think you can trust?"

The voice cut off suddenly, leaving a deafening silence in its place.

"_Caution!_" An automated voice cracked over the system, startling everyone with the sudden shift. "_Alert. Incoming Grimm attack. Threat level: six. Please seek shelter in-_" The warning was interrupted by a sudden blast.

Yang froze where she stood, eyes going wide as she looked on in horror where the smoke had started to rise. A bomb had gone off in the stands.

Jaune tumbled forward but continued making his way towards the arena.

"_Threat level: nine._" The voice corrected. "_Please seek shelter i-_" Yang blocked out the rest as she tried to focus, her eyes refusing to move away from the smoke.

It only took a second before the crowds began to run, a slight pause where everyone became aware of the situation they were in; the Civilians began to run, filled with fear and panicking under the impression that any one of them could be next.

Yang saw Jaune vault over the railing and onto the platform below. She made to follow but the calm that had allowed them to get as far as they had was now gone, forcing their group to push through a wave of civilians leading the other direction. It was slow progress.

Yang cursed as she saw the shadows from above, the protective dome held them back for a moment but it wasn't built to hold up against the sudden influx. A Nevermore landed and broke through, glass showing down as the smaller Grimm used the chance to fly in.

Through it all, Pyrrha didn't move to defend herself, even as people called out to warn her. She simply stared forward with a haunted look on her face. Jaune appeared in front of her at the last second, holding up his arm to catch a pair of talons on his armor before falling to his knees, the action finally seeming to snap the Champion from her haze.

Pyrrha rolled back and to the side, grabbing Milo and switching it into its rifle form, putting several rounds into Grimm's head. The beast screeched in pain before falling to the ground, already beginning to dissolve.

Yang was the next to arrive, leaping onto the back of a Grimm that had approached them from behind; smashing its head down onto the ground. She unloaded a shot into its head before jumping off. Unlike most of her friends, she had been able to carry her weapons with her.

It was a lot easier to conceal her gauntlets than a sword after all.

She noticed a few other hunters descending the arena, some with weapons, and others with nothing, but they were struggling to make their way through the crowds.

Another Grimm landed to her side, screeching in anger just before a large clawed foot sat down on top of it. The Nevermore didn't seem to notice that it had just killed one of its allies, or it didn't care as its red eyes zeroed in on the things it saw in front of it.

She noticed Jaune's hands shift to his waist, once again trying to draw the sword that wasn't there; he pulled out his scroll and typed in the number to summon his locker.

The Nevermore didn't seem willing to wait, charging in as best a flying creature could. Yang rolled to the side, firing a shot into its side as it moved past. Pyrrha leaped back, tossing her shield at the Grimm.

It bounced off its beak, causing the creature to roar but otherwise seem unaffected. Several shots hit around its eyes as Pyrrha attempted to hit its weak spot, missing by only a few inches.

Say what you would about Grimm intelligence but it had sense enough to realize the situation it was in; rearing up it pumped its wings, launching itself up a few dozen feet while also knocking most of them back from the force of it.

It screeched once more before a blast launched itself into its mouth. The Nevermore falling down to the arena, wailing as it half landed half crashed.

The Grimm reared up preparing to attack, just as something impacted the underside of its head, piercing flesh and muscle to push through to the other side before rupturing out of the bone plating.

The Nevermore flailed for a moment before falling still, tilting downwards and smashing into the arena floor.

Yang was still lowered in a combat stance even as no Grimm came to replace it.

The one during initiation had been a hard fight. This one felt almost anti-climactic in comparison.

General Ironwood stepped forward, lowering his still smoking pistol and bringing a hand to his ear. "Captain, what's the status with the fleet?"

Yang couldn't hear what was being said but judging by the General's sour expression it couldn't have been good. A number of dull thuds signaled the arrival of the first locker, a moment later the arena was dotted with them as hunters-in-training grabbed their gear.

Some were grabbed by professional hunters, running off in directions that would be the most at risk, others sought out the Headmaster.

Jaune walked over to Pyrrha, pulling her into a hug.

Pyrrha tried to speak but her voice cracked and died off. Instead, she simply hugged her partner back, tears falling down her cheeks.

Nora rubbed the girls back, looking to her own partner in worry.

Yang took the second to look for her sister, finally noticing the younger girl's dazed look. All she had to do was stand near her and Ruby buried her head in her stomach. She saw Blake and Weiss step forward hesitantly, unsure of what to do but wanting to do something to help all the same.

"The air should be clear now, get transport to my location an-" The General paused as somebody on the other side spoke. "The ceiling has been broken in by the Grimm, land on the damn arena!"

The Headmaster walked over, placing a hand on the Generals shoulder. Ironwood's head snapped up but after a second of stare down, he sighed, looking away.

"Beacon is the target." He looked over to them, face softening for a moment as he saw the pain they were in. He spared a glance for where Penny had fallen before his face turned to stone. "We need to get you all there to help defend it. We can't allow the academy to fall."

"What about the people still on Amity?" Ruby's voice was barely above a whisper. "Won't they be in danger without one of you to help them?"

"One of the senior hunters can oversee the evacuation."

"Most of the actual hunters were stationed at Beacon." Ozpin said, Yang thought she heard the slightest hint of annoyance behind his words. "We thought it best to keep them on the ground so that they could secure a landing area for the civilians here."

The General paused for a moment before growling. "Fine, I'll oversee it myself and once i-"

"That won't be necessary." The Headmaster held up a hand cutting him off. Looking over the group. "I trust that you can handle things here, Nicholas?"

Yang turned to see that Jaune's father had joined them, his wife held tightly against his side.

"My priority is Juniper, I w-" His wife gripped his arm, cutting his words off in an instant.

"Sweetie, we both know you couldn't watch as this happens." She smiled, despite the situation they were in it didn't seem forced, only a little strained.

Nicholas looked into her eyes, imparting something through the simple act, before sighing. "Very well. I will see that the evacuation is taken underway properly."

Yang looked back just in time to see the relief on the General's face, before it was wiped away.

"Thank you, Mr. Arc. My men will be at your disposal." Ironwood nodded to several Atlesian Soldiers who had joined them.

Two Bullheads landed just as Nicholas and Juniper were led off. Several more Atlesians jumping off and following in the direction they had gone.

After a moment, a man in a white lab coat stepped out.

"Doctor, she's over here!" Ironwood yelled over the sound of the engines. "Get her core back to my flagship as soon as possible!"

The scientist didn't say anything, simply waving over a few others to help him.

"I need to get back to my ship to coordinate my men! Once I have an understanding of the situation I'll be joining you at Beacon!" The General continued. "This one's going to Beacon! Ozpin, it's all yours!" The General stepped back, turning and moving towards the ship they had loaded Penny into.

Yang watched Ruby as the Bullhead closed its doors, before slowly rising and escaping out of where the roof had once been.

Weiss stepped forward, placing a hand on her friend's shoulder. Ruby turned and pulled her into a hug.

Weiss hugged her back.

"Beacon will likely be under assault when we arrive." Ozpin didn't raise his voice over the roar of the engines behind him and yet his voice was still audible. "Our foremost concern is aiding the hunters and security officers in the protection of the civilians still located on school grounds."

Yang took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She felt a hand settle on her shoulder as a feeling of calmness washed over her. She turned to see Jaune's eyes staring back. There was an intensity there she didn't recognize before, as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished.

Replaced instead with something she would call defiance.

Yang smiled as best she could, though she could tell it didn't look as confident as normal.

"Who's ready to kick some terrorist butt?" She punched her hand, going for the most confident look she could manage.

Nora yelled in support while everyone else nodded. It did more for her confidence than any fancy words from the Headmaster.

* * *

**Authors Note: And that's the chapter, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if it was a shorter one, and as always let me hear your thoughts in the reviews.**

**Sincerely SE**


	40. Chapter 40

**Authors Note: Enjoy**

* * *

The flight couldn't have been but a couple minutes but it felt like hours. She was far from the only anxious one, even Ozpin looked a little more on edge than she had ever seen him. It was for good reason of course.

Beacon was under siege by the Grimm and there were still civilians in the area. From what little she overheard from the pilots radio, things were looking bad. The Grimm had yet to break into Vale proper, but the way things were going the city would have its own concerns soon enough. The sheer amount of negativity from the civilians at Beacon would be enough to drown their defenses in Grimm.

Thankfully, they had Atlas and their armies to help fight. The Atlesians were taking a beating trying to hold back the tide but they were buying time and that was enough for now. Once the civilians were safe the hunters could turn their full attention back towards the school. Grimm horde or not, she liked those odds.

Soon the cavalry would arrive and they were gonna make the Grimm regret the day they wandered out of whatever cave they came from.

They just had to make it until then.

"LZ is clear," The pilot's voice buzzed over the intercom. "Your escort will lead you to the FOB, there you can link up with whoever is leading the defense."

Things had already been organized? There was something to say about the Atlesians and their discipline but Yang couldn't think of it. Instead, she prepared herself; physically and mentally.

Nobody said a word as the Bullhead landed abruptly, shaking violently at the sudden stop. She would have fallen over were it not for Jaune catching her. His smile was a little forced but it still had a hint of smugness to it.

"So now you're literally falling for me?" She wanted to punch that look off his face but smiled instead. The humour was nice, it helped more than just her relax. Even now, she could see his team laughing at the crappy joke. She could practically feel Weiss' eyes rolling in her head and it distracted Ruby from what had just happened in the arena.

Blake didn't even seem to hear it, simply staring at the door with an intensity that said she was looking beyond it. A soft hiss wrung out and the door flew open.

"Best of luck." The pilot's voice came back over the intercom.

Ozpin was the first one out, already moving away from the Bullhead before the rest of them had even set foot out of it. It was the first time she had actually laid eyes on Beacon and it caught her breath.

The school grounds had been turned into a battlefield. She could just make out a few Grimm moving around in the distance, the faint sound of gunfire and yelling. It took her a moment to process it all, she wasn't the only one. Each of them were affected in their own ways, even Ozpin.

After a moment a couple soldiers came over to address them, or Ozpin rather. He gestured for them to follow and they did, being led in the direction of a number large tents set up on one of the other landing pads.

A makeshift barricade served as their wall in case any Grimm decided to try anything, though judging by the lack of action they had managed to clear at least a part of the school grounds.

Dozens of soldiers were rushing back and forth, some moving to relieve others on the barricade, while others rushed off in groups with their froids further into Beacon proper.

They were led to a tent set up roughly in the center of the encampment, where their escort told them to wait as Ozpin spoke with the commander. A voice from the inside told them all to enter and the man who escorted them nodded, before allowing them all inside.

The walls of the tent had a number of tables set up, all with some kind of computer or radio on it. Men and women barking out instructions and orders while constantly updating a number of boards with information she didn't understand. In the center was a table with a map of Beacon.

A woman had her back to them as they entered, inspecting something on the map.

"Headmaster, I'm glad you have been able to join us." Winter turned to look at them, sparring an extra long glance at Weiss, no doubt to make sure she was unharmed.

"Specialist Schnee." Ozpin nodded. "What is the situation?"

Winter turned back towards the map. "We have Grimm spread out through the academy grounds. We've managed to get the bulk of civilians out but there are still a number in Beacon proper, they're currently the center of our focus."

"How did the Grimm get so close so fast?" Jaune probably meant to whisper it to one of them but Winter clearly overheard him.

"The White Fang brought them in via Bullhead, before dropping their own forces off. It's made predicting the Grimm's movement difficult."

The White Fang were the ones behind all this? Yang spared a glance at her partner, only to see a very neutral expression on her face. Despite that, she could see the emotion in her eyes. It was difficult to tell what emotion exactly but, judging by the way her hand gripped her weapon tight enough to turn her knuckles white, it wasn't a good one.

"We've also had unconfirmed reports of Adam Taurus somewhere in this area." She gestured to a group of side buildings.

Yang didn't know the name but Blake clearly did because her hands began to shake. Yang set a hand on her partner's shoulder, causing the girl's head to snap to her. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.

A second later it was gone and Blake stood perfectly still.

That worried her more than the clear fear she had seen in her partners eyes.

"-aiting for more hunters to arrive from Amity." Yang turned back to the present concern, making a mental note to speak with Blake as soon as they stepped out of the tent and could get a bit more privacy. "Until then we can't risk overextending ourselves."

"Then it is good that hunters have already arrived." Ozpin turned to face them. "You are to follow Specialists Schnee's orders, she is skilled and trained how to handle this kind of situation."

He looked back to Winter. "I'm afraid I can't stay and help, there are things in the school that I must see to." It was clear she wanted to ask questions but she nodded instead. Ozpin turned to her. "Once things here have been settled head to the tower."

Yang wanted to ask why but nodded instead. There wasn't time for questions, they had to act fast in order to stop things from getting worse. He left and for a moment they stayed silent.

Ruby was the first to speak. "What do you need us to do?"

Winter broke them up into teams and instructed them to defend the barricade and the surrounding area until more hunters could arrive. It wasn't the most glamorous thing and it wasn't what most of them wanted to do but if it helped they wouldn't hesitate.

She heard a wearing sound from beside her, one of the Atlesian robots that guarded the entrance to the command tent seemed to twitch before its face plate glowed red.

* * *

Torchwick was loose on his ship. Ironwood growled but kept his composure. They would be there soon enough, though it would be a closer call then he would have liked. He was more frustrated with his own oversight.

He had left the scroll on that ship. It was under lock and key but reports said that Torchwick wasn't alone. If they got their hands on that scroll and got it to the command room.

Ironwood refused to entertain the thought.

"Sir, I'm trying to reach the bridge but I'm not getting anything!" The pilot was already moving to land anyways, knowing the General wouldn't want to waste a second.

"Men, be prepared the second we land. We must make it to the bridge as soon as possible." Ironwood turned to the Scientist. "Are we-"

"I've got it, James." Dr. Polendina stood, holding something gently in his hands. "We won't have a very large window. We have to act fast." He handed the item over reluctantly.

The General nodded, pocketing it before turning to the door. "Open it up, I'm going ahead. Keep the doctor safe and make for the bridge." The door opened and he lept out.

The fall was only a couple meters and he landed in a roll, moving as fast as he could to the nearest entrance way. There wasn't a single person on deck, Ironwood clutched his hands and ignored the implications of that.

The route to the bridge was fairly straightforward and nobody challenged him on his way. The door opened just in time for him to see Torchwick turn from the console he stood by. A scroll was plugged into one of the readers, a symbol of a black chess piece displayed on every screen in the room.

Ironwood drew his gun, preparing for a fight, Torchwick's smile was filled with arrogance.

"I don't know if that would be in your best interests, General." The criminal turned to one of the screens, a camera feed showing just what they had done. "I'd say you only have a few seconds before things get truly out of hand."

The General glared but lowered his gun. Torchwick smiled and moved closer to his companion. "For what it's worth, I hope you win." A second later they were gone, replaced by the sound of shattering glass. He paid it no mind, instead, rushing over to the central control unit.

Reaching into his coat pocket he withdrew the device the doctor had handed him, plugging it into the console he waited.

His men arrived behind him, the doctor with them, and he still waited.

"Did it work?" The doctor's voice was filled with a mix of pain and hope that the General understood all too well.

The holographic display before them came to life, the black queen symbols on the nearby screens vanishing.

"I am combat ready!"

The General breathed a sigh of relief, smiling at the model displayed before them.

"It's good to see you Penny." He meant every word of it. "We can talk later but right now I need you to do something for me."

"Sir?"

"A virus has been downloaded onto my ship, can you-"

"I've already begun to purge the system."

He couldn't express how glad he was to have her.

* * *

The droid's display went back to normal, as if nothing ever happened. It hadn't gone unnoticed of course.

Winter was speaking over one of the radios to try and get answers. Whatever she heard clearly shocked her, as she looked to the nearby droid with concern. She gestured for it to leave and it did.

She seemed suspicious that it had followed her order but shook her head and listened to whatever else was being said. She smiled a moment later, it was a strange thing to see on the stern woman's face.

Yang couldn't think of a single time she had smiled or looked even remotely happy. Though, to be fair, she had only ever seen her during the mission to Mountain Glenn and now. Neither were exactly happy occasions.

"Yes sir, I'll patch her through to the main channel." She tapped a few buttons on a nearby console. "They will be able to hear her now."

The console was silent for a moment before a familiar voice spoke. "Is friend Ruby there?"

She saw her sister step forward, hesitantly. "P-Penny?"

"Affirmative, it is I!"

Yang saw the tears swell up in her sister's eyes. "I thought you were… we saw you die." Pyrrha looked away in shame only for Nora to hug her from behind, Juane resting a hand on her shoulder.

"My father saved me!" Penny explained. "General Ironwood called him all the way from Atlas a few days ago."

Yang smiled , and to her surprise it was honest. Nobody had died yet. They still had a chance to win this without losing anyone.

She turned to look for her partner, only to realize she was no longer standing beside her. She looked through the group but saw no sign of her.

Jaune was the first to notice her concern.

She was careful to keep her voice down. "Where's Blake?" Juane looked around, clearly not having noticed either.

Yang looked back at the map, noticing the section Winter had gestured to earlier. The place where the Atlesians had supposedly run into Taurus.

_Damn it, Blake. What are you doing? _

* * *

The Grimm were easy to avoid, their senses overwhelmed by the amount of negativity in the air made it easy to avoid them. How he would have loved to destroy them, to fight back the horde and save the day.

Alas, that was not his mission. There was more than one thing of Value at Beacon, Miss Xiao Long was safe for now but the Relic had to be hidden.

Once it was safe he could turn his attention back to the invasion of his school and the protection of the Fall Maiden.

"Oh, what do we have here?"

Ozpin stopped where he was, turning to the woman in the red dress. She held herself like a huntress, confident and armed, but it was her eyes that gave her away.

"Students are advised to head to the landing pads, though I'm sure you already knew that Miss… Fall, was it?" He turned to face her, hands resting gently on his cane.

"If I see any students I'll be sure to pass on the message." Weapons appeared in her hands.

Ozpin sighed but fell into a combat stance. He would have to make this quick, the Relic might stay hidden where it is but he would feel far better were it with him.

Hopefully Salem hadn't taught her too many tricks.

* * *

**Authors Note: This chapter was a pain, mostly because I had to go back and watch some v3 stuff to figure out the time table a bit and uh… I didn't do that until the day I uploaded this because I'm lazy and just got my gaming console after 7 months of no video games.**

**I know Neo's semblance doesn't involve teleportation but… I like the Coeur Al'Aran style Neo, so that's what I'm going with. AU? Sorta? **

**I also like what he did with Roman and how he has a "will change sides to escape Cinder" type deal. So in this story he kinda tipped them in the right direction by "accidentally" leaving his scroll at Mountain Glenn where they could find and retrieve it. Which just so happened to allow them to prepare for the virus being unleashed, even if they made the oopsie of leaving the scroll on the same ship as Roman was being held on. **

**That is my chekhov's gun for a drastically different "Fall of Beacon".**

**Still remains to be seen whether this will be a fall or not though.**

**Hope you enjoyed it and as Always I encourage you to review and elt me know your thoughts.**

**Sincerely SE**


	41. Chapter 41

**Authors Note: New chapter is here, if a tad bit late.**

* * *

It wasn't difficult to stay hidden, with all the chaos from the Grimm and the White Fang, nobody noticed a shadow slipping through the prestigious halls of Beacon.

Mostly, said halls were abandoned. The students and, more importantly, civilians had made it out of the school proper already. For the first time she could think of, she was happy to see the Atlesian droids marching along.

Were it not for them things would have been so much worse, but even with all the might of Atlas brought to bear, Blake wasn't sure it would be enough.

Adam was here, leading the White Fang. That thought shouldn't have surprised her, Adam had always been skilled and gifted when it came to leading people into battle. On more than one occasion a raid had succeeded only because of his quick wit and decision making.

No, it was no surprise that the White Fang had looked to him for guidance. It didn't even surprise her that he would lead the White Fang to attack Beacon, it was unfortunate and she hated him all the more for it, but she wasn't surprised.

What surprised her was that she had run off again. Of everything going wrong that was what her mind fixated on. That she had so willingly left to find Adam once it had been confirmed he was here.

She thought about going back but she didn't. She had sworn to Yang that she would talk to them and not cut them out when she needed their help but…

They would follow her without hesitation, but she refused to risk her friends lives like that. She knew Adam, maybe not in the same way she used to but at least how he fought. One blast from his semblance could kill anyone of them.

And it would have been her fault.

She could have warned them about it and taken the chance but Adam was cunning, he had always been the best of them. He would know they were after him long before they arrived and he would have ample time to set traps and plan how to deal with them.

Despite how naive it sounded, she knew he wouldn't do that to her. Not out of kindness or love, but because the thing Adam had become would want his revenge. If she brought her team to help her fight, he would take that revenge out on them.

Would he kill Weiss first? Her being a Schnee already painted a massive target on her back but the fact she stood with Blake… Adam would have made it more than cruel and he would have taken joy in doing so. Could she bear to watch Ruby die trying to help her? Cut down by a monster in human form.

Could she watch Adam kill her partner simply because she had the audacity to claim such a title?

No, Blake refused to endanger them. Adam had always been a better fighter than her but she had advantages, advantages she could hopefully use in her favour to… to kill him, before he could hurt anyone she cared about.

It was a slim chance, but it was there. If she snuck in she might be able to get the drop on him. That was one thing she had always been better at and it just wasn't possible to do with her team.

They would yell and berate her, Ruby would likely even cry, but they would be alive to do so.

_I will be too. _She swore to herself and her team, she would come back alive and victorious, and she would take their anger if it meant they were safe.

Blake ducked below the window, carefully listening for any sign of Grimm or White Fang. After a moment she stood, taking a second to scan the area with her eyes, before vaulting out into the open.

The cafeteria had been the dead center of the reported sightings and Blake knew that's where he would be. She had skirted around the building to get to the farthest side from the direction she had come from, and she had made sure to keep down as she approached. This single empty space was the only risky part.

No cover, no shadows, and no sign of activity Once she made it across to the wall on the other side she would be able to scale up and look in through one of the second story windows. From there she would be able to get a good shot if he was still in the building.

"You always were easy to predict, my love."

* * *

"Nobody saw her leave!" Jaune shouted, struggling to be heard over the sound of combat. "Maybe she..." He couldn't think of anything. There was no reason he could think of that didn't paint a terrifying picture. Yang knew it too, but she at least tried to look encouraged. For his sake.

Sadly he knew her too well for that to work.

He ducked under the claw of a Beowulf, pulling his shield up to push the creature off balance before piercing his sword through its ribs. It howled in pain, thrashing as he withdrew Croccea Mors, but fell a limp a moment later.

"Ruby and Weiss are out looking for survivors now, maybe they'll find her!" He didn't have to look to tell Yang was angry, he heard it every time a Grimm's bone plating cracked. The forces of her punches were normally enough to stun an opponent, even a Grimm, for a moment at least.

With how she was feeling currently, he almost pitied the Grimm. Almost.

"Nora and Ren are also searching for survivors, perhaps they will find her!" His partner weaved in between several Grimm, effortlessly cutting them down. "Even if they don't, that may be a good sign!"

No body meant she wasn't dead, it made sense even if it was a little unsound. Blake could have just as easily been taken hostage or eaten by the Grimm but it was true enough. Blake was sneaky as all hell, if she didn't want to be found she wouldn't be, and with everything that was going on she would pro- no, she _would_ be fine.

They were all going to be fine.

He caught a claw on his shield, allowing it to force him back a few feet as the creature extended its arm, before stepping to the side and bringing his blade down in an overhead arch. The Grimm managed to start a howl in pain, just before a blade forced its way through the bottom of its chin.

They had been assigned to defend the area being used as their base of operations, killing Grimm and helping wounded get to safety. Ruby and Weiss had been tasked with going to the CCT Mall to look for civilians and check up on the soldiers stationed there. Ren and Nora were meeting the search parties wherever they could and escorting people to them.

It wasn't glamorous work, not that Jaune cared. Their job was difficult and as the night went on the moments of rest only seemed to get fewer and farther between. Thankfully the mechs had been sent to help them hold the area, but despite how advanced they were, they couldn't really stop anything more than a couple Grimm. They were meant to be support, not the front line.

Eventually, and rather suddenly, the tide stopped. No more Grimm pressed them, nor did the White Fang.

"Think we beat 'em all?" Jaune tried for his best smirk, ignoring the soreness of his muscles as he rolled his shoulder back.

"That might be a bi-" His partner was interrupted before she could finish.

"Hunters!" One of the Atlesian soldiers called out to them, running over. "Specialist Schnee said you are clear to break off. There's a gap in before the next wave of Grimm arrives, and by then the reinforcements will already be here." He turned to Yang. "I was told to make sure you made it to the tower, per the Headmaster's guidance."

"That…" Jaune took a moment to look at Yang, giving her the opportunity to stop him. She didn't. "won't be necessary, we'll go with her."

"Yes Sir." The soldier nodded. "In the meantime my squad will stay here. Best of luck hunters." He saluted and then turned to speak to a few other soldiers who had gathered.

"Sir?" Jaune turned to his partner. Pyrrha only shrugged, just as confused as he was.

"Come on, we need to find Bl-" Yang was interrupted as their scroll went off simultaneously.

It wasn't a number he recognized. They looked at him and he answered it skeptically.

"Hello?"

"_Salutations Huntsmen Arc!" _

"Penny?" It was difficult to tell with distortion but it couldn't have been anyone else.

"_Indeed. The General told me to try and set up a link between all assets on the ground, since the CCT is down this has proven quite troublesome." _

The CCT was down? He hadn't noticed. He pulled his scroll away from his ear to see that it technically wasn't picking up any signal. He thought about asking how they were talking but knew he wouldn't understand the answer, so avoided it.

"Well you've got us. We were just about to try and find Blake, then head to the tower."

"_No need, I have already located Miss Belladonna!"_ Jaune was surprised but didn't interrupt. "_She is currently engaged in combat with Adam Taurus."_

Jaune winced, sparing a glance towards Yang. The concern and worry on her face made his heart hurt. "Where is she? We'll get to her as soon as possible."

"_Miss Xiao Long needs to go to the tower, Headmaster Ozpin was on his way there the last time we saw him." _Nobody missed how she didn't answer the question. For a minute Jaune thought Yang might rip the scroll from his hands.

"We'll get her there after we get Blake, the Headmaster can wait." He made sure to lock eyes with Yang as he said it. "Where is Blake?"

Penny stayed silent for a moment. "_Miss Belladonna is currently located in what remains of the dining facility. Grimm and White Fang forces have left the area fairly clear so as to not attract any attention to them." _

The Grimm had left an area alone? More likely the civilians in the area had all been evacuated and so there wasn't any negativity to attract them. Or, not enough at least.

"Thank you, Penny. We'll try to make it quick. If you can get word to the Headmaster, let him know we're coming."

"_Affirmative, good luck Mr. Arc!" _The call dropped a moment later, his scroll once again showing no single. Whatever she had done appeared to only be a temporary fix.

"We better hurry, the fastest way to the cafeteria is crawling with Grimm," Pyrrha said. "But if we take the back way it should be clear, if what… if what Penny said was true."

Jaune nodded. "Lets go." He was already a few feet away before he realized Yang hadn't followed. Instead, she kept switching her gaze between the direction they were going and the tower.

"Yang?"

"Jaune, she's… whoever has the other half of the maiden power is that way." She nodded towards the tower. "I can feel her using the power, I don't know how but I can." She looked so unsure of herself for a moment, no sign of the confidence that he had come to rely on. "I need to find Ozpin." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"Then we'll go with you."

"No, Blake needs help. You have to-"

"Then I'll go with you and Pyrrha can go after Blake." He spared a glance towards his partner, she smiled softly showing she understood. There was no hate in her eyes, even as he said he would leave her. There was nothing more than understanding.

"No." Yang refused to meet his eyes. "Jaune, I need to go to the tower but I need to know Blake is safe. I don't have time to do both, whoever the other maiden is, they're getting close to the tower." Jaune hated every word she said.

"I need to know Blake is safe, and there isn't a single person in this world I trust more to do it than you."

Pyrrha could do it, he wanted to yell, she was stronger and faster than him. He wanted to tell her that she was being reckless, careless, idiotic. He wanted to scream at her and demand she not go alone.

But he knew what she was saying. She was stuck between trying to save her friend and do something that might protect the whole kingdom. She was forced to choose between the safety of Vale and the life of her friend.

A choice that had no right answer, no matter how you looked at it. At least this way there was a chance things could work out.

"We'll get Blake," Yang made to speak but he pushed on. "We'll get Blake and then we'll head towards the tower, you and the Headmaster better be there when we show up." He felt something sting at the corner of his eyes as he said it, his voice wavering slightly. "We'll save Blake, and then we'll help you save Beacon."

Yang closed the distance between them, wrapping her arms around his back and pulling him into a tight hug.

"I love you, Jaune." How he had dreamt of hearing those words, and how he now hated them. They sounded too much like goodbye.

"I love you too, Yang." He tried to keep his voice steady. "You better be there when the three of us show up."

Her silence broke his heart. A moment later she was gone. He turned and started in the direction of the cafeteria, The Invincible Girl following him close behind. If she noticed the tears in his eyes she had the kindness not to mention them.

He thanked her for it.

* * *

**Authors Note: Hope you enjoyed and as always I encourage you all to review and leave your thoughts.**

**Sincerely SE**


	42. Chapter 42

**Authors Note: Dont forget to review and let me know what you think. **

* * *

Jaune did his best to keep up, attempting to ignore the burning in his chest. He didn't ask Pyrrha to slow down however, if anything, he wished she'd go faster. If only so he would then have to do the same.

They had elected to take one of the side paths around the school in an attempt to avoid some of the larger packs of Grimm that might have otherwise slowed them down. It allowed them to avoid any combat but made the distance far greater. By the time they arrived at the area containing the cafeteria Jaune was beginning to think his lungs were on fire.

He would have rushed in, were it not for a hand gripping his shoulder.

"Take a second to breath," Pyrrha said, face red from the exertion of running around half of the school grounds. "You'll need your strength to fight."

Jaune reluctantly nodded, leaning on a wall. He took the moment to scan the nearby buildings and streets, all of which were completely vacant. It took him a moment to realise what was wrong with that statement.

There were no Grimm or White Fang. The Grimm he could write off, it made sense that they wouldn't stick around in an area without civilians. They would go further in to find themselves prey to hunt.

The White Fang were not so easily written off however. They may have still been monsters, but they had the capacity to think, and it made no sense that they would leave the area empty. Realistically, they should have stayed out of the path of the Grimm by keeping to the outer sections of Beacon, or at the very least they should have left some people at places they had to have known people would flee to.

They hadn't, and the only reason that made sense was that they had been told not to.

"Do you know anything about whoever it was that Blake ran after?" Jaune didn't recognize the name, but if it was somebody in charge of the White Fang it wasn't difficult to guess that they would have been dangerous.

"I heard his name mentioned a few times back in Mistral." Pyrrha said. "Adam Taurus was believed to be the leader of the Mistral branch; he was very high on the wanted list as I recall." She also gave him a brief description of what she had been told he looked like.

Jaune cursed under his breath. "Any idea how strong he is?"

Pyrrha shook her head. "Not really, though he did manage to avoid capture for quite some time."

"We'd better hurry then, no telling what kind of danger Blake may be in." He paused to check their surroundings once more. After he was sure it was clear they broke cover.

The cafeteria had seen better days. Although the food fight had done its fair share of damage, it was nothing compared to this. The building was falling apart, holes and craters littered the surrounding area and fires burned inside.

It was honestly a miracle the building was still standing. The sounds of combat from within both worried and reassured him. Combat meant that at least somebody was still fighting, and raised the possibility that Blake was still fighting.

Finding a proper entrance took longer than he would have liked, though in all actuality it was likely only a few minutes. The actual doors were mostly blocked off by rubble or sealed shut. Finally, they spotted a section of the wall that had been broken and they cautiously entered the building.

Just in time to hear Blake cry out in pain and watch her aura crack away.

The man who she was fighting had his back to them, a mistake Pyrrha was quick to take advantage of. She tossed her shield in his direction and it made it about half way before the man noticed, by the time it had crossed the distance he was no longer standing there.

Taurus, and it could only be him going by the brief description Pyrrha had given him, looked at them with pure hatred and a hint of disgust.

Blake looked terrified. "What are you d-" She tried to stand only to start to fall, Jaune caught her but kept his eyes on Taurus. Pyrrha put herself between them, keeping herself in a low stance.

"Yang sent us." He moved her over to a wall so that she could support herself. "Said you may need a bit of help."

"Jaune, you have to leave!" Blake's eyes were frantic, switching between them and Taurus.

"You really should listen to her." Taurus spoke to him but kept his eyes on Pyrrha, correctly judging her the larger threat. "Maybe you'll live if you do."

"Are you an idiot?" Jaune snarled at Blake, for once taking his eyes away from where they should have stayed. "Do you have any idea how worried Yang was? Do you have any idea where she is now!?" He tried to control the volume in his voice but it was a losing battle. "We could be protecting her right now, instead we're chasing after you!" It took a moment for him to recognize the venom in his voice.

Part of him wanted to apologize for it; but he ignored it. "She sent us after you, so here's what's gonna happen." Jaune turned away from Blake, ignoring the look in her eyes, and focusing on the monster in the room. "We're gonna save you and drag you back to Yang, kicking and screaming if we have to, and we're gonna kill anyone who gets in our way."

The monster smirked. "I'd love to see you try." Jaune released Blake, holding up his shield and angling his sword.

"Don't say we didn't warn you." Pyrrha lunged in first, Jaune flanked to the side before doing the same.

The monster only smiled.

* * *

Never let it be said that Beacon was small, the buildings alone took up an enormous amount of space in a world where space was an incredibly expensive thing. In between each of the buildings there also tended to either be large open areas or elaborate decorations such as fountains, arches, or other stylish designs. They served no real purpose but to look nice.

They also made the school grounds about a million times larger than they had to be.

Yang groaned as she finished putting down the Ursa that had gotten in her way, before taking off in the direction of the tower once more. She could no longer feel the other woman using the Maiden powers, a detail that left her more concerned than relieved, but she had a rough idea of where she would be heading.

It was slow progress however, between the sheer vastness of the school grounds, and the battle currently taking place there. It hadn't realistically taken her more than a couple minutes to reach the halfway point, but those couple minutes had felt like an eternity.

Yang groaned as another Grimm made itself known by letting out a guttural roar. It was an Alpha Beowulf, and she couldn't help but wince. It wasn't the strongest thing she'd ever fought, but it would be an annoyance, especially if it had a pack of them nearby… in fact, that was probably why it was being so loud.

Yang shifted her foot forward, planning to let the beast charge her and slip behind it when she could. Running past it would be the best choice at this point. She was on a time limit, one she couldn't even see, and was unfortunately not in the mood.

The Grimm got a few steps forward, preparing to lower itself to all fours before a red blade exploded from it's chest. It seemed just as surprised as her and looked at the blade, just in time to see it be withdrawn. The Alpha Beowulf fell without another sound.

Yang looked up and any thanks died on her tongue. It seemed that fate had other plans. Yang hadn't ever actually seen the woman standing across from her in person but she could have recognized her in an instant.

A lot had changed over the years, but Raven's sense of style was not one of those things.

Neither of them spoke, simply staring across the short distance between them. Yang's patience snapped and she made to leave, sadly the direction she was going just so happened to be towards Raven.

"Yang I-"

"Dont care." She refused to hear it, charging past the women, even as she moved to block her. "I don't have time for you right now, if you wanna help then find some Grimm to kill but if you're just here for me you'll have to try some other time." Yang kept her back to the woman, eyes set on the tower. "I have t-"

"You'll die." The words were simply, but said with such certainty that Yang was forced to pause. "If you go you will die."

She waited for more but she only received silence, until she took another step.

"Come with me and I can take you someplace safe." Yang continued forward, Raven following after. "Didn't you hear me? You _will _die."

"At least I'll die for the people I love," Yang didn't look back. "I won't run like you."

"Please…" The word was barely audible, for a moment Yang thought she had imagined it. After all this Raven, the woman who had abandoned them, was begging her. "Please, come with me to the tribe. You're strong enough that they'll accept you there, if not, they'll answer to me." Raven paused, a strange emotion filling her voice. "Don't throw your life away for this."

Yang took a breath, attempting to ignore the words and force herself to flee. It was the hardest thing she had ever had to do, up to that point, but the night was still young.

"I'd rather die for someone I love than live for nothing." She broke into a jog after that, though had Raven wanted to, she could have caught up. She didn't however and Yang pressed on alone.

One day she would say what mattered, one day she would scream and shout it all out, but there just wasn't time today. Raven would wait, just like she had made her wait her whole life.

Raven was left standing alone, watching her daughter run to her death. In that moment, all her strength meant nothing.

* * *

Jaune fell back, catching the blade on his shield and wincing at the force. Pyrrha was quick to intervene, forcing Taurus back but not landing a hit. He felt his shoulder ache as he leveled his sword, once again attempting to get to the side and attack from an angle.

Pyrrha was the one acting as the main distraction until any kind of opening was made, then he slid in to try and take advantage of it while she continued to press him. It was only due to their extensive training together that they managed to avoid hitting each other as they weaved in and out of the fight.

It wasn't enough to overpower their foe however, much to his annoyance. Any time Taurus got held up they would try to press him, and each time he managed to find a way out. He'd done more damage than they had at this point, though most of that was directed at Jaune, Pyrrha still sported a few cuts of her own.

He wouldn't say they were losing, but it wasn't winning. Everytime he stepped in he was forced to block a shotgun blast from the man's sheath, everytime Pyrrha found an opening the man managed to get his sword into position to block it at the last second.

Jaune deflected the blade with his own, pushing it aside and attempting to shove his shield into his opponents face. A hand grabbed and pushed it aside before connecting with his jaw. HIs head snapped back and he brought his sword around to ward off any follow ups. It was unnecessary, Pyrrha had already stepped in to force Taurus back.

All the while that same smirk had adorned his face. How Jaune wanted to hurt him.

The sound of gunshots rang out as Blake fired her weapon from the ground, their opponents aura flared but no real damage was done. They took the chance to charge once more.

Jaune pulled his shield up to catch the blast aimed at his face, pushing forward with his sword at the ready. Pyrrha leapt out from behind him, attempting to use her weapons range advantage by having it extended in javelin form.

Her lunge was knocked to the side, leaving her with an opening that could have been fatal. Jaune stepped forward as Pyrrha landed, blocking any attempt to strike that came. None did however, their opponent pulled back once more. That same smirk still present, even as he began to run out of room.

They quickly found themselves on the defensive as Taurus lunged forward, he feigned high and Jaune cursed as he naturally moved his shield up to block, only to realize a second too late. He attempted to catch the strike towards his side with his sword. He was met with partial success but still took part of the strike on his arm.

Pyrrha stepped in, blocking with her own shield and spinning down while swiping at her opponent's legs. Taurus moved to the side, stepping out of range but making no move to attack them.

Jaune growled as the monster's smile grew ever more proud. He stepped forward, arching his sword in a downward strike. A flash of amusement on the monster's face told him of his mistake.

He cried out as pain lanced up his side, aura managing to stop the bleeding but doing nothing for the pain. He nearly dropped his sword but just barely managed to keep hold. Pyrrha stepped back in, allowing him to pull back for a moment.

His sweatshirt had a tear in it on his side where the blade had struck and the skin was already beginning to bruise but there was no blood. Pyrrha seemed to be doing a bit better on her own for the moment, blocking any strikes that she had to and dodging the rest.

Jaune wiped the sweat from his forehead and moved back into the fight just in time for Taurus to disengage once again, this time was different however. He stepped farther away and lowered his blade more than usual, still up enough that he would be able to strike if he had to but it was more relaxed.

"I will say, for what you lack in skill you make up for in stubbornness." He smirked. "But I'm afraid it will make no difference."

Jaune made to step forward but stopped when Pyrrha held her blade in front of him. He spared her a glance, finally taking note of just how tired she looked. She had been the one doing most of the actual fighting and it was starting to show, she was by no means done, but it seemed she wanted the moment of pause as well.

"What we're doing here makes no difference." Taurus said, gesturing with one hand to the destroyed building they fought in. "Not in terms of the battle. This is my own personal objective, but not one I can't claim another day." His eyes fell to something behind them and Jaune didn't have to look to know what it was he was focusing on. "You are not the goal here today."

"Then what is?" Pyrrha's voice was cold.

Taurus grinned. "You already know that."

"Yang." Jaune muttered, more specifically the maiden powers she now had.

"And do tell, where was it she was running off to?" When nobody spoke he chuckled. "We already know of course, the tower. She's probably already dead."

Jaune bit back his anger, attempting to control himself but he couldn't deny the effect the words had on him. His eyes moved in the direction he knew the tower was.

His voice shook. "Pyrrha I-"

"Go." She looked back at him over her shoulder, her eyes didn't judge him despite how justified it would have been. "Go help Yang, I can take care of this."

Taurus laughed. "Yes, perhaps you'll be able to die beside her."

Jaune paid him no mind. "I'm sorry Pyr… I'm so sorry."

She only smiled. "It's okay Jaune, I forgive you. Now go."

* * *

Yang gasped for air as she reached the top. The tower's elevator had been broken, because of course it had, and so she'd been forced to run up the stairs. There was no sign of Ozpin however and so she took the second to breath.

Moving over to the massive window she got a good look at the school grounds. Even so high up the sounds of battle were still audible.

Yang felt something flicker inside her and she rolled to the side. The window shattered, raining glass down on her. She paid it no mind, rolling up onto her feet and looking at the entrance on the other side of the room.

A small flame burned in the darkness.

"Not the candidate I expected," A voice taunted her from the shadows. "But no choice would have made a difference."

"Wheres O-"

"Dead." The voice sounded amused. "Honestly I had expected better from the esteemed headmaster."

Yang felt her stomach roll as the woman stepped into the light.

"Now then, I believe you have something of mine."

* * *

**Authors Note: This chapter was a pain, hence why it was uploaded a bit late. Will try to do better in the future. Still not happy with how it turned out but oh well.**

**I know some people will likely say Raven is being a bit OC, but I don't think she is. In her own twisted way she does seem to care, at least in V5 we got a glimpse of that. Though Raven wasn't quite brought to tears this time, the idea is that Qrow told her about the Maiden power and that bothered her in a similar way to their argument in the vault. We'll see what yall think.**

**Hope you enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know what you think, it really helps me out and lets me know what I can do better.**

**Sincerely SE**


	43. Chapter 43

**Author's Note: Don't forget to leave a review and let me know your thoughts once your done. Hope you enjoy it.**

* * *

Pyrrha took a deep breath, forcing a look of calm onto her face as she stared down Adam Taurus. He was without a doubt the strongest person she had ever fought, stronger and faster than anybody she had seen in her tournament days, not that that came as any surprise. What made him dangerous, however, was his cunning.

When he'd been outnumbered he'd fought a retreating battle, never over reach or taking risks and taking advantage of whenever they had. He'd waited and bided his time until he had seen an opening to remove one of the combatants.

It hadn't been an attack however, at least not physically. Taurus had spent their fight scheming and he'd managed to find Jaune's weakness. He'd removed him without having to beat him in a fight.

Now Pyrrha stood against him alone. A far more even match than there had been previously and he seemed keen to act on it. Pyrrha blocked his strike, wincing at the force behind it before rolling back and blocking the follow up she knew was coming.

Her shield had only made it up in time due to the help of her semblance. She angled it so that his sword would move to the side, creating an opening she could use to strike back. Aura flared and from both of them as her sword made contact, only for her chest to be blasted at point blank range.

She growled and gritted her teeth, ignoring the pain and pushing forward in an attempt to keep her opponent off guard. He moved to block her strike but his sword failed to make it in time, her own cutting down on his shoulder and causing aura to flare.

He pulled back and Pyrrha brought her shield up, catching the blast before pushing forward. She drew her sword back, transitioning it into it's spear form before lunging forward with it, managing to land a strike on his shoulder.

Taurus gripped her weapon with his hand, tugging it forward and pulling her off her feet slightly. She was unable to maneuver her shield into place in time but twisted her body out of the way, taking the strike on her upper arm instead. She would have dropped her shield had she not experienced such attacks before.

The moment his sword made contact she called on her semblance. She thought about ripping it from his hands but decided against it. It wasn't impossible for him to have training in unarmed combat and without his weapon she wouldn't be able to direct his attacks like she had been. It was a risk she wasn't willing to take. At least this way, she had more power over his attacks.

Instead, she pulled her own weapon free and ducked down. Forcing his weapon to continue in the direction it had been going. It would seem strange but not quite noticeable. He kept hold of his sword of course, being dragged forward slightly.

Pyrrha rolled to the side, planting a foot on the wall there allowing her to halt and twist all at once as she plunged her weapon forward and into her opponent's thigh. He didn't cry out in pain, in fact he didn't make a sound, but he did buckle slightly and she took that chance to attack again.

He blocked her first strike but was unable to block her shield as it came rocketing towards his face, cracking his head back. Rather than resist the movement he seemed to go with it, allowing himself to be forced back while warding her off with a swipe of his blade.

Pyrrha took a moment to breathe, feeling the ache in her muscles. It had been a very long time since she'd had a fight like this. Though, in her defense, she had been exhausted before the fight even began.

The match with Penny had been grueling, and not just mentally. Penny was alive, or close enough anyways, she had to remind herself. Regardless of how the match had ended, it had been a long one. Adding onto that the countless Grimm and White Fang she had been forced to fight on the way here, not to mention the running, and Pyrrha was starting to feel the strain.

All of that was before factoring in her aura being firmly in the yellow when they left Amity. The fights she'd been in since hadn't been too difficult but the occasional wound was bound to happen. By the time Jaune had left she was already lower than she would have liked.

So she had to fight smart, and if that meant taking moments in breath during the fight so be it. She didn't know how long this fight might go but she was confident she could win it. The question became what she would have left to work with after it was over.

Normally she would have rushed in to keep up the pressure, but on opponents as skilled and experienced as this she would be bound to take some hits in exchange if she did so. Instead, she decided to play it safe.

Her weapon was halfway into its rifle form when she noticed her opponent sheath his weapon. His hands stayed firmly gripped however and any hope of surrender, no matter how small it had been, died an ugly death as he grinned.

Blake yelled some kind of warning but Pyrrha barely heard it as the world went silent, her eyes widening as the room was swallowed in red light.

* * *

Jaune fought the urge to turn back, trusting that Pyrrha would be able to handle it. She was the Invincible Girl for a reason after all. She'd earned that title for a reason and he had faith in his partner and her ability.

He had his own task to focus on.

He could see the entrance to the tower ahead and more importantly he could see up the tower itself. The flashes of light he could see coming from the windows stole his breath away.

Yang was up there fighting whoever it was that was behind all of this. He had to hurry.

A Beowulf howled, snapping his attention back to the path ahead of him. He swore but angled himself to make as small a target as possible. It charged forward but only made it part way, collapsing to the ground with a ring of gunshots.

"Might wanna pay a bit more attention." He didn't recognize the guy who stepped forward, but he seemed vaguely familiar in the same way most students did.

"Thanks for the help." Jaune nodded and moved to step past.

"Woah there, were you off to in such a hurry?" The grey haired guy smiled at him, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Nobody to save that way, we just came from there."

Jaune tore his shoulder free and glared at the man before him, looking around for a moment. "Whose we?"

His eyes widened slightly and he slipped back, launching a foot up into his stomach which Jaune failed to block. He tumbled backwards, gasping for air.

"Nice one, real smooth Merc." A green haired girl appeared from nowhere, moving to stand next to the guy Jaune now recognized as Mercury. He was supposed to be a student from Mistral if he recalled correctly, though Jaune was currently doubting that.

"Shut it Em, it's been a long night, ok?" Mercury snapped back, though his smirk seemed to hint at him enjoying himself. "Besides, that little trick worked on everyone else didn't it?"

"W-what the hell are you two talking about?!" Jaune stood, finally having managed to get his breathing under control. He kept his sword and shield up.

"Oh well, back to work it seems." A second later Jaune was tumbling back having just managed to block a kick towards his head.

His success was short lived however, as his shield was quickly knocked to the side leaving him open. He brought his sword around in a clumsy attack that managed to push his opponent back for all of a few seconds.

Jaune cried out in pain as something struck him from behind. Looking over his shoulder he caught a glimpse of the green haired girl before she disappeared once more. He looked back up just in time to catch a foot to his chin, flying back he landed roughly and rolled with the momentum.

A second later he heard the sound of gunshots hitting where he had landed. He managed to throw himself back onto his feet and get his shield back up. Neither of the two pressed him however, simply standing where they had been at the start.

Blocking the route to the tower.

Jaune growled and moved forward only to stop when a woman landed in between them with her back to him. He didn't recognize her but she had the bearing of a huntress and the weapon to match. She didn't say anything, simply starring the two down.

Hesitantly, Jaune moved forward. She turned slightly, one red eye fixated on him from behind the mask she wore.

"Are you Jaune Arc?" Her voice was cold and yet Jaune felt no fear. He nodded and she turned away from him. "Yang is in the tower."

Jaune looked between the woman and the two who had blocked his path. Their eyes stayed on her.

Slowly he moved past them, keeping his eyes on them all the while. He didn't turn his back until he was several feet away. Then he turned and ran as fast as he could. Looking up to the tower he could still see the flashes of light but now that he was closer he could make out the broken windows.

Whoever the woman was, she had his thanks. He'd pay her back if he ever got the chance but for now he focused on the only woman who mattered.

* * *

Pyrrha gasped for air as her head throbbed, the world a dizzy mess before her. She hadn't expected his semblance to be so… devastating. She'd managed to block the strike, though she would much rather have dodged it she had been backed into a wall. Kneeling and with nowhere to go she had been forced to try and stand her ground.

She attempted to use her semblance to get her shield in place but it had been strapped to her back and it would take too long, even with her semblance's help. Instead, she'd been forced to use her half transformed weapon. It had worked, had it not she likely wouldn't still be breathing, but it had only been able to do so much.

She tried to focus, moving to stand before falling to her knees. Every part of her body hurt and she could feel that her aura was dangerously low. She reached out for her weapon, pulling it over only to realize the sorry state it was in. An attack like that would have been hard on Milo in any form but it had been mid way through a switch.

The mess of machinery and broken parts was heartbreaking but she knew she didn't have time to waste. She tried to stand, only to cry out in pain and fall back to the floor.

A red blade was pierced through her shin. Her aura, what little remained, had still been focused on her front and she hadn't heard him approach. He withdrew the sword and attempted to cut down towards her head. Pyrrha housed the mangled form of Milo up to catch it, holding the attack back not with physical strength but her semblance.

Even then it wasn't enough. She twisted in an attempt to get better leverage, facing him straight on and using her other hand in an attempt to push back. Still the blade, dripping with her blood, grew ever closer.

Her aura sparked as her weapon dug deep into her hands and she felt her strength failing. She her semblance out. It wasn't focused by any means, several bits of debris moved away from them, but it also succeeded in ripping the sword from the monster's hands.

He would need time to go grab it, time that would allow her to breath and get over the haze in her head. Only, he didn't move to grab his weapon.

She wasn't entirely sure what had happened, one moment she had been kneeling and the next she was flat on her back. The pain in her chest said that it was likely a kick but she had never seen it hit.

Her instincts told her to move and she attempted to roll to the side. She was too slow, however, as her opponent sat on top of her with his legs on either side of her body; his hands clasping at her throat.

_He's going to strangle me to death. _It was a strange, distant, part of her mind that realized it first. A detached thought that seemed entirely at odds with the struggle she found herself in. She tried desperately to move his hands away from her throat, when that failed she clawed at his face. She could see the aura flare but he made no move to shield himself, his hands staying firmly wrapped around her neck.

Her lungs burned as blackness crept in on the corners of her vision, her attempts at moving him growing weaker as her body struggled.

This was really it, she was going to die. Her eyes searched frantically for anything she could use as a weapon but found nothing. Everything had been blown away by her semblance. The thing that had allowed her to win time and time again, no matter her opponent, was now going to be her undoing.

The irony wasn't lost on her, even as the force on her throat was increased, even as she felt consciousness slowly slip away.

She should have ripped his sword from his hands the second they entered the room. Instead, she'd relied on the technique she'd used countless times before. Slight adjustments, never enough to notice, a light touch that could oh so easily be written off as just bad luck.

It had been that attitude, that unwillingness to pull out everything she had, that had cost her chance with Jaune.

Now it was going to cost her life.

She found it amusing how, even as she lay dying, her thoughts were of the partner she loved. The partner that loved her, even if it wasn't the way she wished him too.

_I'm sorry Jaune… I failed. _The tears finally rolled down her face.

All the while the monster's smile remained, even as a red blade was shoved through his chest the smile remained; though the amusement in his eyes flicked to confusion. A moment later she saw them fill with terror.

* * *

Blake's hands shook as she released Adam's blade, leaving it buried in his back. He tried to turn his head to look at her but fell in the process, his hands slipping away from Pyrrha's neck.

Blake moved over to drag the girl out from under her attacker, once they were a few feet away she allowed herself to look Pyrrha in the eyes. Only to realise she wasn't breathing.

"P-Pyrrha?" Her voice was little more than a whisper and she shook Pyrrha's body in an attempt to wake her. "No, y-you can't-" Blake cut off with a whimper, attempting to hold back tears and failing. "I tried to… I tried to stop this from happening. I-I…" She'd run off alone hoping nobody would come after her but of course they came after her.

They were good people, unlike her.

"Pyrrha!" She moved her ear to the girl's mouth, watching her chest for movement while she did it and hoping to feel something, to see _something_.

"B...Blake?" Her heart leapt into her chest, relief washing away the shock at the sudden words. She sat back up hoping she hadn't imagined it. "Where-"

"Don't worry, just… just breathe." Blake looked up, honestly expecting to see Adam standing over her, only to see his still body several feet away.

Pyrrha was okay. Balke couldn't tell if she wanted to laugh or cry.

They were going to live.

* * *

**Author's Note: This chapter was a lot easier than the last one, except for that last part. That was a little harder. One v one fight scenes are much easier to write than two v ones. Of course, it remains to be seen whether the audience likes it or not and as always I look forward to hearing from you on that.**

**I got a few reviews about this last chapter so I wanted to address it. People were asking why Pyrrha didn't just take his sword from him and beat him that way. I tried to address this in writing but in case it didn't get across I'll also just say it. There's two reasons, one Pyrrha has no idea if he is only skilled in the use of a sword or if he's just as dangerous without it, meaning that if she takes away his sword and he is still a threat she cant take full advantage of her semblance anymore. At least with it she can control the fight a bit more. **

**All of that changes of course once she gets desperate and had she known about his semblance she would have done differently but she didn't know until it was too late. **

**The second reason is that it's more interesting to read this way. That one reviewer said it, even if he meant it in a sardonic manner, I find it really boring when people just go "ope now you cant fight me" and honestly that kind of move isn't really something Pyrrha would do under normal circumstances. Obviously this isn't a normal fight and as it goes on she does eventually do that and it backfires and results in the whole "nearly suffocating" thing. I tried to make it interesting and I hope it worked.**

**I hope you all enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and let me know your thoughts. **

**Sincerely SE**


	44. Chapter 44

**Authors Note: Don't forget to review after you're done. Always love to hear what you all think. This chapter was a pain to write too, so I'd love to hear what you all think. Positive or negative, I want them both. **

* * *

Yang ducked back and watched the arrow fly by, only an inch away from her face. She stepped back again and watched as fire engulfed the place she had been standing. The sweat from her brow both being a mix of exhaustion and the sheer heat of the room.

The air hurt to breathe, feeling as if her lungs were on fire. Had the windows not been blasted away early on she was convinced she would have suffocated from the smoke and heat. As it was, the wind from so high up served to blow the heat into her eyes, making her wince and struggle to keep them open.

She couldn't tell if that was the power of the maiden of just this woman specifically. Yang hoped for the former, if that being the case then she would be able to tap into part of that power herself, or at least in theory. In reality she couldn't make the power do much of anything.

She fired a few shots from Ember Celica, none making it through as Cinder either batted them aside or dodge out of the way with ease.

Strangely, when the fight had first started, there was only one thought going through her mind.

_Her? She's the one who killed m-Amber?_

She wasn't sure what she had expected really. She'd had a general idea of what Amber's attackers had looked like but… she'd also seen Cinder before, hell she had classes with the bitch, and yet she hadn't even recognized her.

The worst part was what Yang now knew, that Cinder had been watching them since they had arrived in the school. Emerald had befriended them, or so she'd thought.

They'd befriended Ruby.

Launching forward, Yang attempted to land a strike before she could swap her bow out for her swords. Sadly she barely made it halfway before the ranged weapon was replaced with two black blades that managed to catch her fist. The force still managed to push the woman back, and she did grunt from the strain, but her aura was unscathed.

Yang stepped back and brought her leg up in an attempt to knock the blades aside, managing to hit air and nothing more. The moment her foot touched the ground, Yang twisted and fired another shot off at her opponent. The shot didn't land directly center like she'd hoped but it did score a strike on her arm, chipping away at her aura some.

Cinder spun with the momentum of the strike before striking at Yang's side. She managed to block one of the blades but the other's hilt was smashed into her face, forcing the brawler's head back.

Yang felt the strike land, felt her aura drain just a fraction, but she didn't feel what she needed to. Her semblance didn't fuel her with the same energy it had before. At the start of the fight that had been her only real way to turn any encounters. Now, however, her semblance was failing. The strikes were just enough to hurt, just enough to do damage, but they had stopped triggering her semblance.

Her opponent had adapted.

Yang reached out to grab Cinder's wrist, pulling down to create an opening. A second later she felt fire engulf her stomach, forcing her to release her grip and be launched back. She felt her semblance flare up finally but by the time she moved to use it to her advantage, Cinder was already firing arrows at her.

Yang pulled back once more, fighting the urge to rush in once more, barely managing to get out of the way in time. She growled under her breath in frustration, her eyes having long since turned red.

That seemed to be the standard for the fight. Her opponent had the edge in ranged combat, Yang was low on ammo when she had arrived at the tower, now she was out, and her opponent didn't appear to have any such limitations. Which meant melee combat should have been the best answer.

It wasn't. Everytime Yang got close, if she wasn't blasted by fire, she was pulled into a fight she could never seem to win. The few times she'd managed to get the upper hand her opponent had simply resorted to blasting her at point blank range. It had to have hurt her some, if her semblance didn't somehow negate that, but it did far worse to Yang.

The question became did she sit in the back and get picked off slowly, or did she move in and take the hits to her aura. Most of said hits failed to trigger her semblance in any meaningful way. The fire blasts did the trick, but with that came all the other issues. Semblance or not the heat from such an attack still affected her, not to mention the sheer pain. Aura stopped any permanent damage from being done but it still felt like she was being burned.

An arrow grazed her shoulder, snapping her out of her thoughts. It was a difficult choice to make but one was still better than the other. The fight might be over sooner but it was already clear she wouldn't be able to wait this one out. Whatever force was behind her opponent, be it training, maiden powers, or just sheer fucking luck, it showed no sign of fading.

She rolled forward, dodging another arrow, and used the momentum to close the distance. This time she almost made it before the swords appeared, but they were there to block her strike at the last second. She grunted and fell back, still unable to match Yang's strength.

Yang saw Cinder's hand lower and braced herself for the pain. The force alone was almost enough to throw her away but she managed to hold her ground and grit her teeth through the pain. She felt her semblance surge and she punched through the fire that had engulfed them both.

She felt her fist make contact with something solid and could just make out the spark of aura through the flames. Yang followed up, aiming for the same place her first strike had made contact, and scored a glancing it as Cinder withdrew.

The flames dissipated just as an arrow flew for her chest. Yang's eyes widened as she attempted to move but was unable to do so in time. The arrow struck her chest, hurting far more than she would have expected, but doing nothing more. She had half expected it to explode but didn't complain.

She rushed forward, once again attempting to press where she had the advantage, or at least, where she wasn't so heavily outclassed. The swords appeared well before she got there, despite the much closer distance, but they made no attempt to block her strike.

Cinder flipped back, landing in a low crouch before leaping back at her. Yang tried to block but felt the blades hit her side as her opponent moved past her. She turned, managing to block a strike to the back of her head, but was forced on the defensive.

She watched as the flame burned in the Cinder's eye, warning her of what was to come. Yang twisted her body out of the way, narrowly missing the fire as it flew past them. She continued with her momentum and spun around, attempting to strike at her face.

Her fist was halted, aura flaring as Cinder caught it on her forearm. Rather than strike again, Yang lowered herself and pushed forward, breaking through her opponents guard and lifting her from her feet.

She felt something hit her back but her aura held strong, her semblance giving her the strength to ignore it. Yang lifted her opponent up off the ground more before slamming her down to the ground. She had planned on foregoing proper strategy, in a fair fight she was going to lose. She had hoped to catch her opponent off guard, and it appeared she had, but it only lasted a moment.

She felt Cinder's hand press against her chest, and for a moment she ignored it instead focusing on trying to do as much damage as possible. Her eyes widened a second later as she realised the issue there, just as she was launched away.

Yang cried out as her back struck the wall and her aura shattered.

* * *

Jaune heard Yang cry out as he drew closer to the top, the fatigue and exhaustion he had been feeling moments before dissipated with that sound. He cleared the last steps up taking two or three at a time, when he reached the top he would have fallen had it not been for the sight before him.

Yang lay against a wall. Jaune recognized the woman but didn't bother trying to recall her name, instead he leveled his sword and moved just as she drew back her bow. She heard him coming, that was clear by the way she had already started to turn towards him, but she hadn't been ready.

His sword smashed into the woman's shoulder, aura sparking violently against his sword. She dropped her bow, it dissipating into nothingness as she summoned two smaller blades. He paid them no mind, as he caught the strike on his shield and moved past her.

"Are you okay?!" Though his back was facing her, he knew she was listening. She had to be.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." He heard her try to stand and it was only due to force of will that he was able to prevent himself from looking at her. "She… she's pretty tough." She spoke in between harsh pants.

"Can you still fight?" He kept his eyes locked on the woman who in turn watched him with narrowed eyes. She seemed unsure of him, or at least willing to wait and see what he was going to do.

"No, Cinder…" Yang paused for a moment. "My aura's gone."

The fight had been that close? Had he been a second slower she might-

He cut that line of thought off with a shake of his head. It didn't matter, he'd made it in time. That also meant they were in a very dangerous situation however. If Yang had lost Jaune had no chance of winning. So that left them with only one real option.

"I'm gonna distract her," He kept his voice low, hoping the woman wouldn't be able to hear his plan. "while I do that, run to the stairs and try to get help."

"Jaune!" Yang hissed, trying to keep her voice low as well. "I'm not gonna leave you to fig-"

"You can't fight anymore, and I wont watch you die." He cut her off before she could continue. "As you are… Yang, please. I'm not gonna try and beat her, the first chance I get I'm running too. Live to fight another day, okay?"

It wasn't exactly the most chivalrous of ideas but he didn't give a crap. So long as they lived, that would be enough.

"Ready?" Yang didn't say anything he could hear but he felt that was more due to what he had just asked of her. A moment later she stepped up to stand beside him, lowering herself into a fighting stance. He hoped it was just to sell the image that she was going to fight.

He rushed forward suddenly, leading with his sword and forcing Cinder to focus on him. She caught his blade easily but was forced to step back or get into a contest of strength. He pursued her, attempting to attack from the side. Again she caught his blade, only this time she lashed out with her second one.

He circled around, narrowly moving out of the way of her strike and forcing her to follow. He positioned her so that her back was to Yang, facing the doorway. She didn't seem happy about it and he could already tell she was going to fix it as soon as she could but it was clear she felt confident. After all, Yang had no aura. He was the larger threat at the moment and she seemed more than willing to take that risk.

She lashed out once more and he caught the blade on his shield, throwing it out to the side he managed to force her arm away and create an opening. Before he even got the chance to take advantage of it he felt something stab into his side, just below his armour.

He struggled to hold his sword, grip faltering due to the pain. When her second sword came around and caught his wrist, it dropped to the floor. He lunged forward with his shield, smashing it into her face and dazing her.

Jaune took her moment of distraction for what it was. "Now!"

It had a predictable effect. Cinder kicked him in the gut, forcing the air from his lungs and moving him several feet away, and spun on the spot to block whatever attack they had planned.

And was met with nothing. Jaune managed to get to a knee but the time she turned back to face him, taking the chance to grab his sword. He attempted to laugh. It came out more as a wheeze since he hadn't gotten his breath back.

Cinder glared at him, eyes narrowed in what was definitely hatred.

"Sorry," His voice was little more than a whisper. "Just surprised you fell for it." His grin was less forced than he had expected. Even as he could hear Yang make it to the stairway.

His grin died as Cinder's look of hate turned into a smirk. She stood and summoned her bow, pulling the string back as an arrow appeared from thin air. Jaune scrambled to his feet just as she released, he pulled his shield up to block where the arrow should have hit only to watch it shatter into pieces.

He heard something behind him and despite his better judgment he looked. He only had a second to see the arrow in Yang's leg before it gave out beneath her and she fell just short of the exit.

Jaune screamed her name but the sound came out inaudible. His vision shook at the sight. In fact, it almost seemed like the building itself shook.

He heard some distant sound of cracking rock as he was forced to his knees. He spared a glance over his scheduler to see his opponent was faring much better, her eyes locked firmly in the direction of the mountain.

Eye's locked firmly away from them. Jaune was at Yang's side before he realized he had moved, sheathing his sword back at his waist. The world shook once more and he looked to the distance to see the monster exploding from the mountain.

A moment later, he had Yang in his arms as they descended down the stairs.

* * *

**Authors Note: No this isn't the end. No this isn't a fake out of Cinder being a dumb ass and letting them flee. It's a luckily timed event that gave him the chance he needed to escape. **

**As you'll recall there was no "Yang breaking Mercury's leg" issue in this story, meaning the dragon didn't have enough negativity to be awoken yet. And no, Jaune crying out for Yang didn't single handedly summon it either, with the attack going on and all the pain that has brought, this served as the straw that broke the camel's back so to speak. **

**Hope you enjoyed and as always I encourage you to review and leave your thoughts. **

**Sincerely SE**


	45. Chapter 45

**Author's Note: Dont forget to review after you've read. Hope you enjoy. **

* * *

Jaune took a deep breath, gritting his teeth in an attempt to ignore the pain through his body. His legs were sore and stiff, slow to respond how he needed them to. His arms were weak, ready to give out at any moment, but he managed to keep going.

He couldn't afford to stop and he wouldn't set Yang down and risk her trying to walk. That meant he only had one choice, keep moving. Despite how simple it sounded, sweat poured down his face as he struggled.

Yang didn't say a word throughout all of it. She remained perfectly silent. Jaune looked down to see her eyes were closed, face pale and covered in sweat.

"Yang!" His voice was hoarse and his throat scratchy. "Come on, there's no time to rest now! I need you to get up…" Her eyes opened momentarily, looking at him for the briefest of moments before they shut once more.

That wasn't good. He cursed to himself as he thought of what to do. They hadn't even come close to the halfway point yet, and at the rate he was going Cinder would catch them with ease.

Yang wasn't going to make it, even if they were able to avoid Cinder. The arrow in her leg had disappeared shortly after hitting her, meaning nothing was stopping the flow of blood which seemed to be gushing out of her. He wasn't a doctor but he knew the danger of blood loss, she needed immediate attention.

When they reached the next floor, rather than continue downwards, he shoved through the doorway and into a short hallway. It wasn't anything impressive, a simple section with a number of offices attached.

He found an open one swiftly and entered, closing it behind them. The room was fairly barren, clearly having not been used for some time and leaned Yang up against the wall down behind the desk as gentle as he could.

She didn't move or resist him and he had to support her lest she fall over.

"Yang?" He kept his voice low in the hope Cinder wouldn't find them. He tapped her face slightly in an attempt to get her attention.

She cracked her eyes open slowly. "Did… did we… get away?"

Jaune felt relief crash into him as she started speaking, before moving down to her leg to see what he could do about the bleeding. He didn't have anything to use as a tourniquet so settled for simply trying to apply pressure to the wound.

"Yeah, well, sort of." Cutting a piece of cloth from his hoodie he applied it to her wound. "We're gonna try and hide out and hope she passes us by." Jaune forced a chuckle, it came out sounding more desperate than anything. "I know, not the bravest thing in the world, but life isn't an action movie and the bad guys just happen to find you." He hoped.

Yang didn't make a sound. Jaune's hands froze against her leg, shaking before he even looked up. When he did he was able to see her eyes were closed.

"No no no, Yang!" He slapped her arm, attempting to get some kind of response."Come on, wake up, wake up!" Nothing.

He moved a hand up to her neck, checking for her pulse. It was weak but still there and so he turned his attention back to her leg. If he could stop the bleeding she would be fine.

Only he couldn't stop it. No matter how hard he pressed or where, blood continued to flow and the cloth he had torn was soaked in only a matter of seconds.

"Please…" Tears fell down his face as he frantically tried to find something, anything, that could help. "I… If I had been-" His voice choked as he found it harder and harder to breath. His vision was hazy as the moisture continued to build in his eyes. "Please don't go…"

He placed his hands back over the wound in desperation, closing his eyes and hoping that it would somehow stop the blood flow. Something shifted inside of him and he gasped in surprise. When he opened his eyes he could see the faint glow of his aura but he could also see Yang's.

His eyes widened as he watched her aura slowly grow in intensity, before both of theirs visibly faded away. Slowly, he removed the cloth to see unblemished skin. No wound and no scar.

Her body shifted slightly. "Y...Yang?" He looked up to her eyes.

* * *

Pain wasn't the first thing she noticed, surprisingly enough. Instead, she noticed how empty she felt. It wasn't anything she could describe, something beyond a physical lack of something.

To say she felt it in her soul would be closer, but still wrong. She could feel her aura, despite how it had broken only a few minutes ago. She could feel it slowly rising from what she somehow knew was someone else's aura, and yet that wasn't what felt wrong.

It felt like half of her was somehow gone. Like a part was missing and so she felt less whole. After a moment she realized it was the maiden powers. She hadn't noticed before, this position being all she had for reference, but now she somehow knew what it should have felt like.

She wasn't alone in her own head. She didn't know how she knew that either, only that she did.

"Y...Yang?" A soft voice whispered. A voice she couldn't forget, even in her hazed state. She could hear the pain in that soft voice, but also the desperate hope.

Slowly, she opened her eyes to look at him. Tears fell from his face but his eyes brightened when they met her's. That look alone brought her back to the present, making her distinctly aware of the strange sense of pain in her leg.

Her aura was stopping the bleeding but she had still been hurt. The constant pain was numbed, but still present as if her aura didn't know how to respond.

"Jaune… what happened?" Her voice was a bit weak, but slowly it came back to her.

Jaune looked to her for a moment, seeming to search for an answer before looking at his hands.

"I… dont know." He set them back down on her leg, his hands glowing a soft white as his aura became visible. A moment later hers did as well and she could feel herself getting stronger.

"J-Jaune… you-"

"Found my semblance…" The shock in his voice made it clear how surprised he was, as he looked back up to her. "Just in time too, you…" He couldn't say it, he didn't have to. It wasn't a difficult thing to guess at. She had been about to die.

_Again._

Yang shook her head softly, before attempting to stand. She'd never died before, though she had certainly come close just now, and yet it felt like a voice in her head was telling her different.

Jaune helped her to her feet and she slowly tested her wounded leg. It was painful, but not unbearably so. She could feel her aura working as she stood there, attempting to heal a wound that it shouldn't have been able to.

"Can you walk?" Jaune kept his voice low. She nodded in response. "Good, if we can make it back to the stairs without running into her we shoul-" He was cut off by an explosion as the building shook once more. A second later, there was perfect silence.

"What do you think that was?" She turned to Jaune, just as another explosion went off. This time closer to their floor.

"Uh, Yang…" Jaune whispered. "You don't think… she couldn't blow up an entire floor to find you… could she?"

_A Maiden could._

The realization was immediate. Cinder not only had the power, she had the desire to. If she thought they had attempted to hide on one of the floors there was no doubt in her mind that she would.

In fact, it was kind of obvious they hadn't fled down the stairs. Jaune, despite how strong he was, couldn't have carried her down all of them by himself. It was only a matter of guessing the right floor for her and Cinder should have had no problem winning.

Had it not been for Jaune's semblance.

"We need to move, if we hurry we should be able to get out of the building before she has a clue." Jaune turned towards the door and Yang made to follow.

_Fight._

She froze a few feet behind him. They… they couldn't just leave, could they? Even if they managed to escape she would be right behind them. If they escaped today, then she would come for them in the future, when they didn't expect it and couldn't prepare.

Yang bit her lip, struggling to think.

_You can win this time._

Yang shook her head, attempting to silence the voice. She couldn't win, Cinder was too strong and the Maiden powers hadn't helped her any, but…

_You're not alone like last time, or the time before that. _

Yang growled through her teeth causing Jaune to stop and look back over his shoulder to see she hadn't moved. "Yang, we need to go."

She didn't say anything, she barely even thought it, all she did was look him in the eyes and he knew she didn't plan on running. He seemed to be able to read her in an instant and his eyes widened.

"This is crazy, you can't really plan on fighting her again…" Jaune stared at her, waiting for her to deny it. She didn't. "You can't be serious! Yang, she'll kill you!"

"Jaune, we can-" Yang tried to speak but he turned away from her and sighed.

He stayed silent for a moment, dragging a hand down his face.

"Jaune… if we don't end this now…" She didn't have to say it. Jaune could understand.

_She'll kill you again. _

An explosion on what had to be the floor above them finally forced him to answer.

"I'll distract her." She tried to speak but he cut her off. "She thinks you're heading downstairs, she'll probably think I'm trying to stop her from getting to you. Once you see an opening… make it count."

Jaune waited a moment for her to agree. She didn't like the idea of him fighting her alone, even for a short amount of time, but he was right. Cinder thought that she was out of the fight, meaning she had one hell of an advantage.

Besides, Jaune had more aura than her at this point, he had the best chance of distracting her. It made sense of course, but she didn't like it. Jaune would be alone for a time.

It made sense and she hated it.

Yang nodded slowly and watched him step out the door.

* * *

Jaune drew his sword from its sheath and faced the entrance to the hall. He kept his shield up and braced his feet.

He was crazy

"Yeah… I really am." He sighed, taking a deep breath in an attempt to steady his nerves. Not that it helped.

Magic, gods, and immortality. Not to mention a war as old as humanity itself… and here he was stuck in the middle of it all. It sounded like something from one of the books his sisters used to read to him as a child. Stories where the hero faces impossible odds and still comes out on top.

He couldn't help but wonder what things were like back home, if they were all ok. He had left them without explanation and without so much as a note.

He'd wanted to be a hero then, but now? He just wanted things to go back to normal. Instead, here he was, standing in the path of the closest thing to pure evil he had ever met, all for a girl.

He smiled and sighed.

All for Yang.

He felt like he should have felt something about that, but he didn't. Yang was his and nobody, not fate, not the gods, and not some magical bitch was gonna take her from him.

The door exploded outwards and a blast of fire surged forth. He caught it on his shield, wincing at the heat but standing his ground. Eventually, it dissipated into nothingness.

"I have to say, I'm surprised." Cinder stepped through the doorway but made no move to attack. "I thought you would have stayed hidden." Her voice was thick with arrogance. She raised her hands and summoned her blades.

Jaune made no attempt at banter. He simply wanted this to end as quick as possible and the only way that happened was through violence.

His opponent smirked. "What, nothing to say? I thought that heroes were supposed to be charismatic?"

Again, he remained silent.

"Very well."

Jaune pulled his shield up the instant those words had left her lips. Hardly a split second later he felt her strike slam into the shield. He made a half hearted attempt to bring his sword around, only to have it knocked aside. He allowed himself to be forced back and again kept his shield up.

Rather than a sword it was fire that struck the shield this time, forcing him back even more. His eyes stung as he struggled to keep them open. The heat made his eyes water, or maybe it was the pain throughout his body, but that only made seeing all the more difficult.

He attempted to bring his sword up to block her next attack but was too slow, gritting his teeth as the blades bit into his aura. He managed to catch her next strike on his shield only to have it pushed to the side and a sudden blast of fire to hit him in his chest.

He swung his sword down but she moved to the side, dodging with ease before bringing her own blade down on his wrist. Her other blade came around to cut for his throat and he only barely managed to stop it by bringing his shield around to halt her momentum.

It came at a cost however and his shield was knocked to the side with enough force to tear it from his exhausted grip. She lunged one blade towards his stomach, but he managed to grab hold of it with his now free hand.

His aura sparked but stopped it from piercing his hand… for a moment. A second later he felt his aura shatter and the blade cut deep into his flesh.

Jaune saw a glint in his opponent's eye as she brought her arm up to strike. He brought his sword around to catch her blade, only to see it shatter apart and reform within his guard.

There was a sickening crunch, and in the blink of an eye, his sense went dark.

* * *

Jaune's aura shattered. A second later a sword cut down and blood splattered on the floor. Yang's eyes widened in horror at the scene. His aura… he… he couldn't have been so low, he couldn't have!

_He used his semblance to heal you, did you think your aura came from nowhere?_ A wretched cynical voice said from within her mind.

He… Jaune had…

Yang's vision turned red as she lunged forward, the sound leaving her throat more akin to the roar of a feral animal. A familiar strong heartbeat echoed in her ears as she focused solely on ending Cinder's life.

She had failed. She'd waited too long for the right opening and now…

The woman turned, surprise clear on her face as she attempted to turn and block her incoming attack. She failed to get her blade up in time, catching a solid hit on the side of her arm. One of her blades dropped and disappeared while the other came around in a weak counter attack.

_Please, _Yang wasn't sure what exactly this voice in her head was, but she pleaded to it anyway. _Help me._

Yang launched her fist forward in a move that normally would have fired a round from Ember Celica, were it not empty. Instead, a flame began to burn in her eyes as a sudden and powerful supernatural wind followed her attack. Launching the woman back and smashing her into the nearby wall. The world seemed muffled as her ears rang, the sound from the sudden impact drowning out all others.

The sudden power felt natural, like it had been something she had done a million times. It was nothing like she had felt during her training with Glynda.

She didn't stop to think about it, instead focusing on the woman who was already back on her feet. Yang pushed forward first, attempting to get the fight as far away from where Jaune had fallen as possible.

A ball of fire erupted from the woman's hands but only made it a few feet before dissipating as it was met with a blast of wind. Yang pushed through before Cinder could conjure her swords again, launching another Maiden-fueled attack before Cinder could try any herself.

Cinder moved to the side just as Yang's fist hit the wall, shattering it and blasting a hole to the outside. The force was so great that splinters of wood and drywall went flying in every direction, as if an explosive had detonated simply from the force of her fist.

Yang turned to pursue her, only to freeze as she felt something else take over. She looked over her shoulder to the hole in the wall and smirked. The fire burning in her eyes grew in intensity as wind began to whip her short hair around.

Cinder lifted her hand in an attempt to attack her but it was too late. A moment later Yang gestured with her hand and fire crashed down on her opponent. Seconds passed in what felt like years, eventually even the Maiden power ran out and Yang fell back to the ground. Landing on her feet but quickly collapsing onto her knees.

She looked up to the cloud of smoke and stood, moving towards where she knew Jaune was. A second later an arrow pierced her ankle, and she fell back to the ground, not making a sound in the process. There was no pain in the wound, the adrenaline had taken over long before now.

The smoke began to clear as Cinder stepped through. She was bruised and bloody, clearly having been hurt by the full force of half the maiden power, but was very much alive. The burns on her arms made it clear what kind of state she was in, but the look on her face was murderous.

"I have had enough!" She stumbled slightly, before correcting herself. "I will take what's rightfully mine! What you have stolen!"

Yang tried to call on the Maiden powers, but the voice was silent. She tried to stand, but found that her legs wouldn't move. She tried to do anything, but found that she could only stare in fear.

"Do you believe in destiny?!" Cinder drew the bow back, an arrow appearing on the string.

A silver blade erupted from her chest and she froze.

"I don't!" Jaune cried out, withdrawing his blade and moving back. Cinder Fall's lips moved as she tried to speak, only for blood to fall down her lips as her bow disappeared. She fell to the ground a moment later.

Yang looked to Jaune, her relief dying when she saw him standing with the aid of Crocea Mors. His sword held in his left arm, his shield arm. His dominant arm was... gone, severed halfway between the shoulder and where his elbow should have been, leaving only a bloody stump in its place. He had not even bothered to treat the wound in any way, apparently having moved directly to help her, his own injuries be damned. But as Cinder emitted her final breath, Jaune too, fell to the ground.

* * *

**Author's Note: Well well well… here we are. Only a chapter or two left to be uploaded and then… that's it. I don't plan on going post V3 at this time, though it is open enough that I could if I want to one day. I'll give a solid description of my next story at the end of the final chapter and, hopefully, have chapter one of that story ready by then. **

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter and as always I encourage you to write a review and let me know your thoughts. **

**Sincerely SE**


	46. Chapter 46

**Author's Note: Ahhh, ending with 46 chapters, a nice… not round number… welp. Hope y'all enjoy. **

* * *

Jaune would have liked to say he woke up gently, slowly shifting from unconsciousness, but that would be a lie. The moment he started to wake he remembered what had happened. An immediate sense of danger filled him as he shot up, eyes snapping open to search his surroundings.

A small room with metal walls and numerous medical machines. It took him a moment for his mind to catch up. There was a muffled sound he couldn't quite place in the distance, but aside from that and the beeping of medical equipment it was quiet.

A moment later the door opened as a woman in a doctor's coat stepped in, the symbol of Atlas over her right breast.

"W-where…" His voice was scratchy and he became painfully aware of how dry his throat was.

"I would advise to avoid talking for now, Mr. Arc." The doctor approached his bed, taking a clipboard from the end and examining whatever was written there. "But, to answer your question, we're currently aboard an Atlesian medical vessel bound for Ansel."

Ansel? He was… they were taking him home?

"What about…" He winced as he fought back a cough, attempting to fight past the soreness of his vocal cords. "The attack?"

"Vale is safe," The doctor moved to one of the machines, sparring him only a passing glance. "There were casualties but, thanks to quick action on the part of Atlas and Beacon, very few were civilians."

Jaune wished he could have been relieved, and in a way he was, but the doctor hadn't said anything about his friends or family… about Yang.

"I'll be back shortly to check up on you," She turned and made for the door. "Don't do anything brash while I'm away." She left before he could even start to mutter another question.

He grit his teeth in frustration, fighting back the urge to growl due to the pain such a response would cause. He needed answers.

Where was Yang? Why was he on a ship back to Ansel?

He brought up a hand to run through his hair, or at least he tried to. He felt his arm move, but nothing ever touched his hair. He looked down to his right side and froze.

He'd… his arm was…

Jaune tried to slow his breathing, even as the machines around him began to beep more intensely. His panik only grew however, as he watched the bandages flex around what was left of his arm.

He'd forgotten about that.

The world shook as he struggled to breath, once again the world seemed to shake. For a moment he thought he might pass out, the edge's of his vision turning black.

"Jaune?" His head snapped to the door he'd failed to notice open.

His mouth opened but words failed him at what he saw before him. As he struggled he felt his eyes water. "Y… Yang…"

She was by his side a moment later, a hand on his shoulder as she visibly looked him over. As he watched her move he noticed how she moved with a slight limp, how her arms were still bruised and how her face was a bit more pale than usual.

But above everything else, she was alive.

He failed to hold back the tears as he reached out with his one remaining arm to drag her into a hug. She returned it without hesitation, and if she noticed the way his tears fell on her shoulder she didn't say anything about it.

"I was so worried about you." She whispered softly in his ear, pulling away for a moment to look him in the eyes. "You almost…" It was her turn to cry as he once again pulled her close.

"How long was I out?" His throat ached as he spoke but with how close she was he didn't have to speak very loud.

"About a week." She replied. "Long enough for them to stabilize you and say you were fit for travel and for the doctors to say that it was probably best for you to be someplace familiar while you… adapt."

He flinched in her grasp, knowing full well what they had meant for him to adapt to. She tightened her hold on him and stayed silent. She didn't lie to him and say it would all be alright, or that he would be fine. She simply held him close and allowed him to cry.

After a time, when he had worked back some of his strength, he started asking some of the questions he needed answers to.

"What happened?"

Yang pulled back moving to grab his hand as she brought a chair over next to the bed. "What's the last thing you remember?" Jaune thought for a moment, before looking down at his injury.

"I… I remember seeing you and her fight after I'd…" He shook his head softly, focusing on what he could remember after that. "Her back was to me and I managed to get up and find my sword." He paused a moment. "I killed her and… that's it." He must have passed out after that.

"After that, you fell unconscious. Ruby was at the top of the tower," Yang smirked. "having just killed the dragon."

Jaune stared at her and waited for her to continue, only she stayed silent. Her grin only grew the longer she waited, and the more suspense that built. Finally, he cracked.

"She did what?!" His throat burned, and he winced as it felt like it was on fire. Yang's laughter distracted him from any pain however.

"My little sister really is a badass, huh?" All he could do was nod. "Anyways, she was at the top of the tower dealing with the dragon while we fought Cinder. Weiss had been with her but was forced to take the long way up and ran into us on the way, thankfully, she had help with her."

"It had been touch and go for a few days," She tightened her grip on his hand, as if to remind herself that he was alive and in front of her. "But you managed to pull through with a bit of help from the doctors."

"She didn't leave your side until just last night." A new voice at the door caused them both to jump. Nicholas stood in the doorway. "She fell asleep most nights leaning over your bed."

Jaune spared a glance towards Yang, who was pointedly looking the other way in a desperate attempt to hide her blush.

"Juniper has more than a few pictures, I assure you." Nicholas laughed as Yang winced.

Her voice was little above a whisper. "Do you think you could get her to del-"

"Not even if I wanted to." Nicholas' laughter only grew as Yang looked back at him and folded one arm under her breasts while her other remained where it was, tightly gripping his hand, as she muttered something about blackmail.

"The doctors say it was a miracle that you pulled through so quickly," Nicholas' smile fell away as a blank, neutral expression took its place. "You're lucky to be alive, son." A silence seemed to fall over the room for a moment while he thought of what to say. "I… had hoped for a moment alone with him."

Yang looked towards the man with a complicated expression. "You can't be serious… he only just woke up."

"I'm aware of that, but there are… things that must be discussed." His father never looked at Yang, his eyes locked firmly on Jaune.

"Go," Yang looked back at him in betrayal. "It's not like I'll be going anywhere, besides, it'll only take a few minutes." Her grip tightened around his hand and she looked between the two. "Besides, I could really go for some water if you can find some."

Yang sighed but stood, slowly releasing his hand as she moved away. "I'll be back in a few minutes." The door clicked softly behind her and the room was silent once more.

Jaune waited for his father to speak only for the silence to stretch on. "We really do only have a few minutes, if you want to say something in private you'd better do it quickly. She'll knock the door down without hesitation."

The joke didn't have the effect he wanted, in that his father simply stared at him. After a moment he began to feel nervous, looking anywhere that wasn't at his father.

"You could have, should have, died." His father's words were devoid of emotion. "The fact you not only survived but defeated your opponent while injured…"

Jaune winced, so Yang had told them the specifics. He shouldn't have been surprised, despite that, he wished she'd left out the details on his stupidity a bit. He could already hear the telling off coming his way, how he shouldn't have been so careless.

He deserved it all, he supposed.

"I don't regret it." He kept his voice low, refusing to look at the man he had always wanted to be. "Despite… despite what it cost me, I don't regret it. Yang would have died and I-" His words were cut off as he was pulled up into the arms of his father.

"I'm not angry, son." Nicholas' voice shook, for the first time in Jaune's life sounding nothing like the stern man he was. "I'm so proud of you, of what you accomplished."

"I-I…" He tried to find the words but failed.

"Had I trained you all those years ago this might not have happened." His father rambled, and Jaune wasn't sure if he was even meant to hear it. "I'm sorry, Jaune. I'm so sorry."

"Dad, I…"

"It will take a lot of work to get back to being a hunter, if that's still what you want?" His father pulled back, waiting for him to nod before continuing. "Then I will do everything I can to help train you. The right way, the Arc way."

The sound of a camera caused both of them to look back to the door, only to see his mother standing there with one arm around a grinning Yang.

"Don't stop on my account, please." His father released him a moment later. "Heh, good effort but I already have the proof."

"Jun…"

"Nicky…"

Despite the fact that he was a veteran Huntsmen, his father looked away first. Coughing into a closed fist as he struggled to maintain control. "Anyways… why don't we leave the young lovebirds alone."

Jaune didn't miss the way Yang's smile turned brittle, a bright blush working its way up her neck. Not did he miss the way his mother held her in place, that maternal hug turning into a surprisingly effective hold with little effort.

"Oh, but I wanted to watch them flirt. It's so adorable!" His mother gushed.

"If we leave them alone… who knows, maybe it will become a bit more than flirts." Nicholas had barely finished his sentence before his mother had practically thrown Yang into the room and was halfway out the door.

"Come along dear, we wouldn't want to impede on young love!" The door was almost closed when he could have sworn he heard his mother say something about grandbabies.

To call the silence awkward would have been an understatement. In a desperate attempt to dispel it, and out of a need to know, Jaune decided to ask about his team.

"Pyrrha was… she was hurt pretty bad." Yang waved her hands frantically when she noticed his mounting dread. "She's fine! Just… still in the hospital. She decided to stay in Vale for treatment once it was clear they weren't gonna let her go with you, Nora and Ren stayed with her obviously."

"But she's-"

"Fine, she's fine." Yang waited a moment to let it sink in before continuing. "You should probably message her in a few hours. Once you're feeling up to it. I know she's been worried sick about you and it would mean a lot to her." Jaune nodded in agreement.

He would do that just as soon as he found his scroll or had access to a terminal. If anything, he could just use Yang's.

"What about your team?" He asked.

"They're fine, all alive and well." She answered quickly, a little too quickly and after a few moments of him staring at her in silence she continued. "Ruby's back in Patch. Whatever she did to that dragon took a lot out of her and she needed to rest. She woke up a few days before we left and it took a lot of convincing to get her to stay put and not come with us."

Jaune smiled softly. "I can imagine."

"Weiss' father tried to call her back to Atlas but General Ironwood talked him out of it, saying how it would make the SDC look bad if they took one of the defenders of Vale away so quickly." Yang smiled softly to herself. "She's currently staying with her sister on one of the cruisers in Vale until Atlas officially withdraws its troops."

"Rebuilding a city's defenses can take a long time."

"That's what she had to say. In fact, she said it's likely that Beacon will be back up long before then, meaning she'll be able to continue her studies."

That also meant she was close enough to visit Ruby, a fact that couldn;t have been an accident.

"Blake is staying with Ruby and my dad to 'protect' her while I'm away." Yang rolled her eyes at that. "I asked her to stay there and watch after her for a bit but I think she took that a bit too seriously. I…" Yang bit her lip, pausing to think. "I think she feels bad about everything that happened. Pyrrha tried to tell her it was ok but… well, you've met Blake. She can be a bit broodish."

Jaune laughed at the description. It truly did fit well, even he knew that despite how little they interacted. His laughter slowly turned to confusion however, as he struggled to understand something. "If she felt bad about Pyrrha, why is she staying to watch over Ruby?"

"That way I can watch after you."

"You mean you're-"

"Staying with you, in Ansel, until you recover enough to return to Beacon." Her smile was bright, his own undoubtedly watery. "It was your mother's idea, though I can't complain."

"Are you sure you know what you've gotten yourself into?" He joked, attempting to prevent himself from crying.

Yang leaned forward, pulling him into a passionate kiss before pulling back just enough to speak. "A relationship with you, I'd imagine."

Jaune blushed and stammered for a moment before he could find his words. He didn't miss the amusement apparent on Yang's face.

"As great as that is, I was more referring to my seven sisters." Yang froze, Jaune began to grin. "You know, the five older and two younger siblings I have?" His grin grew to shit eating proportions as the realization hit her. "Those same siblings who have _never_ had to share me with someone."

"It… It won't be that bad…" She said, attempting to convince herself of what she knew was a lie. His smug look didn't reassure her. "I… may have forgotten… one small detail."

"You won't think they're a 'small detail' after a few days of questions." He said. "Word of advice, stay away from Coral. She'll be the worst… probably."

Actually, come to think about it, he hadn't talked to any of them in months. He swallowed hard, fighting back his nerves. The last time he'd talked with them had been just before he ran away…

_Crap. _

"W-well… at least I'll have you there to help me, right?" Yang looked to him, desperation in her eyes.

He reached out with his arm, grabbing her and pulling her close.

"I love you… but you're on your own with them."

"Crap." She didn't pull away, instead she pulled him in closer. He scooted over on the bed to make what room he could, allowing her to lay next to him. He closed his eyes, feeling the exhaustion that had been building begin to over take him.

"I'm glad you're here, Yang."

As his world slowly drifted away he heard her response.

"I love you too, Jaune."

* * *

**Author's Note: And that's the story. I tried to go for an ending that's open enough that I could come back to it but is still satisfying, and I **_**think**_ **I struck a good balance. There are still unanswered questions, but a lot of those can be left up to your interpretation.**

**In the end, I decided to end this story with a solid focus on Yang and Jaune being together. This is, after all, a romance fic. I know I lost that focus at times and kinda meandered around a bit but I actually think the last few chapters landed pretty well, despite my own dislike for some of the fights. **

**I've learned a lot while writing this fic and I'm gonna try and take those lessons to my next story. Pacing and chapter length are always difficult and go a bit hand in hand. I know it would have been ideal if every chapter were 3-5k words but I just couldn't manage that kind of size on a weekly basis. In the future I'm going to account for that chapter size a bit better and aim for 3k chapters. We'll see how that goes though. **

**Another issue, I feel, was that I got the characters wrong at times. I'm concerned Jaune came off a bit too OC for what transpired in this story and some of the reasons for things weren't as fleshed out as they should have been. Benefit of hindsight. All in all though, **

**I'm proud of this story and how well it's gone. Nearly 150k views at the time of writing this and counting, hopefully I'm not a one trick horse and my next fic can stand up to this one. It's crazy to think that this whole story started out as one of my friends and I swapping favourite ships and designing a story based on just a few ideas.**

**This is going to be a difficult story to follow up, for sure. **

**On that note…**

* * *

**The Next Story**

**By the time this chapter goes live I will have already posted the first chapter of the new story, a Pyrrha centric fic that is certainly different from this one. It isn't a romance like this one is but I'd like to think it has potential to surpass A Simple Bet Between Friends. **

_**Destiny No More**_

_**Destiny is a force that nobody can control, that nobody wields in their favor. But even when things look to be stacked against you, that doesn't necessarily mean that they are. And when all else fails, Destiny is not set in stone…**_

**Hope you enjoy.**

* * *

**Editor's Note:**

**Hey People, you don't hear from me often, but I helped edit this particular work you've just finished reading. I go by General Mayhem online, but you can just call me Tyler. It's been a pleasure working on this with SE, he's a good friend of mine and I think that we've managed to carve out a pretty good story from the metaphorical marble that was the outline. I'll be working with SE on his next story as well, and that is shaping up to be quite fun to work on as well. Thank you for reading this story, we poured a lot of effort into it and it's shaped into something to be proud of.**

**Sincerely,**

** General Mayhem**

* * *

**Overall, I truly hope you've enjoyed and I hope you'll all stick around and continue to read my work. I wanna thank my editor for all his hard work and dedication to the project. His quick responses and last minute editing really salvaged the stroy. It wouldn't have been the same without him.**

**Don't forget to review and let me know your thoughts. As always.**

**Sincerely,**

** SardonicEffigy**


End file.
